The Exorcism Displacement
by Neko-sama no Kokoro
Summary: DGM x HP crossover - So Komui's mission hadn't been an akuma after all, and now three Exorcists are stuck in modernday London while waiting for a spell to return them back home. And the world grows ever more dangerous for the unmagical... Allen x Lenalee
1. Scroll 1

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: I wish I was as talented at writing (and drawing, too) as the two ladies who created these series. I also wish I was as rich as the one who doesn't draw.

Why is my story different from the other four or so Harry Potter crossovers out there? Well, here's why:

No Earl. No action. No being-sent-on-a-mission-to-Hogwarts crap. In fact, this is really just the D.Gray-Man characters in the Harry Potter universe. None of the characters play a major role in their lives, unlike in other ones.

I was about to set this in the fifth year, as the result of hating the sixth book with a passion, but I couldn't miss the references to Inferi – I wasn't going to have akuma in this originally, but it was too good to pass up. Also, this means I get to screw around with the romance.

…but I digress. Now, without further ado:

* * *

Scroll 1: Allen Is A Brat (or, Why Are Chapter Titles Entitled "Scrolls"?)

The Chief Monitor of the Black Order peered over the top of his eyeglasses at the pair of teenagers standing in front of him, as he so often did before every mission and at the beginning of every fanfiction involving a mission.

"Now, this is only a rumour," he said slowly, absently rustling some papers on his desk, "and the Finders haven't been able to find an akuma or evidence of Innocence…"

"Then why are you sending us?" That voice belonged to Allen Walker, the youngest Exorcist in the order and also one of the most boring, as he had no strange personality quirks that didn't involve inanimate objects (assuming any food is, of course, dead before he eats it).

"…well, they can't determine what the cause is, either. So we've decided to send you two: one who can find akuma, and one who is intelligent enough to determine the cause."

"Thank you, nii-san." The girl standing next to Allen turned pink; she was Lenalee Lee, the spectacled-man's assistant and younger sister.

"It is comforting to think that the Lee family members are of that sort," Komui murmured, giving Allen a look that clearly said _not until you have 50 more IQ points. _Allen returned the look with one that told him _I'm still better than Kanda._

Komui couldn't argue with that one.

"…So anyway, since Lavi couldn't figure it out-"

"What, he's already there?" Allen interrupted. Lavi was the apprentice to the mysterious old man known as Bookman; he recorded events in history, and would be the first to know if any such event had happened before.

"He arrived last week," Komui explained, "and delivered his conclusion yesterday, through a communication golem."

Lenalee scanned through the thick black folder that she had been given upon entering the room; it contained information on the situation that she was to examine. "If Lavi took a week to determine that he needed assistance – where will we all be staying?" she asked. "London is too far away from the Order to travel back and forth every day."

"You'll be staying in the closest Catholic church," he told them. "They're not very common, but Lavi says that one is located in the area of these mysterious unexplained events."

"And…" Lenalee took a quick look at the contents of the folder again and gave her brother a puzzled glance. "What exactly _are_ these mysterious unexplained events?"

"Well…" Komui looked sheepish. "To be honest, we don't really know. Lavi confirmed that they _are_ mysterious and unexplained, but he didn't give a description of them in his report."

"I see…" She clearly didn't, but such a phrase was not made to be _honest_.

"And we're leaving _tonight?_" Allen muttered despairingly. "Will I have time to eat dinner first?"

Thankfully, at least one thing was consistent these days: Allen's appetite. "Yes."

"How about breakfast, lunch, and dinner tomorrow?"

"…No."

"Awww…"

"Come on, Allen-kun", Lenalee murmured, grabbing his arm and giving her brother a reassuring smile. "It'll take all night to get to London… you need to eat quickly."

As his sister and the younger boy departed, Komui couldn't help but give them a sad look. He had a strange feeling about this mission… and if his strange and unexplained thoughts about the events to come were correct, he wouldn't see them for a long time…

* * *

As Lenalee and Allen stepped onto the paved surface of the London streets from the riverboat the next morning, they were greeted by two very consistent things: Lavi's bright and mischievous grin, and the miserable English weather. Despite the grey sky with the constant threat of rain, Lavi was even more cheerful than normal; most likely, it was because the red-haired Exorcist had been without the company of his friends recently and was more than happy to be reunited with them.

"Allen! Lenalee! _There_ you are – come on, I've got a carriage here; we're going to the middle of the city…" Still smiling, he led them to a carriage and nodded to the driver. "Where we came from, sir – the Church - I don't suppose Komui told you anything about the events?" he said without pause, turning to face the other two. "Not that I said anything; they're so unusual…"

"We've heard," Allen said flatly. "Not just _unusual,_ mind, but also _mysterious _and _unexplained_, and once even _undetermined_."

"Undoubtedly," Lavi responded, having missed the sarcasm. "There really isn't a pattern at all, though. There haven't been any unexplained deaths recently, so it doesn't really sound as if akuma are involved. I thought it was Innocence, but it would have to be capable of movement, as the events are all occurring within a three-kilometre radius of the church."

"It's odd that akuma wouldn't be involved if Innocence was, though," Lenalee said thoughtfully.

"That's what I thought, but unless you can think of any other explanation for random events…" Lavi trailed off with a careful look at the other two.

"What about magic?"

Lavi turned to Allen and gave him a _you don't really believe in that at your age, do you_ look. The younger boy squirmed uncomfortably under that one-eyed gaze.

"Well… it's _possible_, isn't it," he muttered. "Even if it's unlikely… _really_ unlikely… okay, so maybe it doesn't exist, but-"

"No, I think Allen-kun might have a point," Lenalee murmured, sending a sharp glare to Lavi. "It's unusual enough that we even _have_ such things as akuma and Innocence, after all; I wouldn't be surprised if magic really was the cause of this."

"…which would mean we can't do a thing, as it's _magic_." Lavi rolled his single green eye. "Come on, I've been researching the history of the world for years, now, and that panda-jijii hasn't said a thing about its existence. Akuma have a rational explanation for their existence-"

"But not their animation," Lenalee pointed out.

"-and it's much more likely that this is the work of a Noah," the Bookman finished, looking satisfied as he leaned back, arms folded. "Don't you agree?"

As they climbed out of the carriage upon their arrival at the church mere moments later, Allen scowled and muttered,

"I _still_ think it's magic."

The priest who greeted them was a timid-looking, pale-haired man just short of his middle years whose dark blue eyes constantly darted around nervously as he wrung his hands. His black clothes not only contrasted with his pale colouring, they also hung loosely on his bony frame.

"S-such a pleasure to see more Exorcists arrive," he said quickly, his voice having the quality of a flattering courtier to royalty rather than a spiritual advisor to younger children. "You must understand, these events are…"

"Strange, mysterious, unexplained, we know," Allen and Lenalee said together in a bored tone.

"Ah, then you have some news of them?" He stopped the motion of his hands temporarily to produce a handkerchief from a pocket and wipe his damp forehead; apparently, he had broken into a nervous sweat at the thought of the mystery. "Well then. Ah. Um. This is certainly…"

The Exorcists exchanged glances that simultaneously said _how is this man still functioning?_

"T-then, if you please…" His dark gaze flitted to a tall stone building across the street, then down to his hands and finally to Lavi, the only familiar face at the time. "While you were gone, Exorcist-sama, I received news of strange noises and a disappearing figure on the fourth floor of that apartment. The old lady believes she saw a young woman walking down the stairs and suddenly vanishing, and there was a loud crack…" The handkerchief dabbed at his face again. "And that table _still _has not been found yet."

"Those are strange events," Lenalee said quietly.

"Indeed."

Allen leaned over to Lenalee and whispered in her ear, "It can't be a Noah. Even Road needs a doorway to move from place to place, right? And we haven't heard of one that can become invisible, and why would one do so after being seen…"

"I don't know," she murmured in response, "and it doesn't sound sinister, either."

"Maybe she wanted the old lady to have a heart attack and die from shock?"

"And what of the noises and table that the priest spoke of?"

"Ah, excuse me…" The priest raised his voice slightly, although it tended to make him look even more nervous and worried than usual. "I can take your bags to the rooms, so if you wouldn't mind responding to the reports…?"

"Thank you," Lenalee told the priest, turning away from Allen. "That would be very nice – Allen-kun, Lavi, maybe we should go now?" She gave them a look that strongly suggested _we shouldn't scare him any more than absolutely necessary._ The two nodded and set off down the street without looking at the older man.

As soon as they had reached the building, the priest gave a long sigh and went to pick up the luggage. "Thank god they left so soon… Those Exorcists, with their powers of God – they're kind of scary."

Evidently, the residents of the aforementioned apartment building did not think so. Upon arriving at the door of the old lady who had reported the incident, she gave the three a long, slow, appraising look, and finally turned her nose up in an unmistakable sniff.

"I see a lady disappear, and they send _children_ to investigate?" she asked in a wheezy tone. "Poor Miss Black… if she had been kidnapped, just think of it, all the awful things that could be happening to her-"

"We're terribly sorry," Lenalee tried to tell her. "Our age isn't important – we've been trained for this kind of thing-"

"Wait," Lavi interrupted her. "This woman has a name?"

The old lady sniffed again, and straightened fogged spectacles with one gnarled finger. "Yes, it was Miss Emily Black," she said haughtily. "The young lady up in room 404 – quiet young thing, always avoiding company – I suppose she just needs a nice man to straighten her out, a bit old to be unmarried…"

The trio left the old woman to speak to herself for the time being and walked up the stairs to the apartment occupied by the mysterious woman. The door was closed, but the three Exorcists could clearly hear the sound of a female voice, humming some made-up tune. Exchanging a glance, they knocked on the door.

"Pardon me – I'll be right there," called a voice. Within moments, the door opened to reveal a tall, pale woman of around the age of thirty with long, curled auburn hair. Her plain yellow dress was covered by an apron, and the smell of cooking soup wafted from inside the apartment. "May I help you."

"Yes, we were wondering…" Lenalee trailed off under the woman's stern look.

"Children should not be meddling in the affairs of adults," the woman said stiffly. Apparently, her polite tone was reserved only for those she deemed worthy of respect, and anyone below the age of twenty could not be one of those individuals. "Now, if you please." She made a motion to shut the door, but Lavi stopped her, stepping forward to hold his hand against the door. Her lips thinned as indignant ire blossomed in her dark eyes.

"How did you know that we were asking about your affairs?" he said softly into her ear. She did not respond, but stepped away from him, her hand reaching behind her as if to grab something.

"Excuse me," Allen said quietly from behind Lavi, "but would you be Miss Black?"

"I am." She looked distastefully at Allen; his hair could not hide a face that looked younger than its fifteen years.

"We've heard from one of your neighbours downstairs that you disappeared," he continued. "And there were reports of strange sounds and…" He glanced at Lenalee for reassurance. "…a missing table?"

"Rumours," the older woman said quickly, giving Lavi another sharp look; he had removed his hand and moved closer to her, a smirk on his face. Was he making her uncomfortable on purpose? "That old woman makes such things up; she really does have too much time on her hands. As for the sounds, well." She nodded towards the kitchen. "I must practice my cooking some more."

"So those sounds were coming from this apartment after all," Lenalee murmured to Allen. "The reports were so vague, we could only assume…"

"If they really _were_ cooking, then it isn't suspicious at all," he responded in the same low tone. "But to have come from here…"

"You don't believe her?" Allen looked back at Lenalee, bewildered at her bluntness in asking.

"Well – it's not that, exactly, but-"

"Would you mind not speaking such slander about a lady," Miss Black said icily, from the doorway. The two teenagers spun around to face her, guilty looks on their faces as they hastily attempted apologies. Lavi attempted to suppress a chuckle, and failed miserably.

"…but I'm still not convinced," Allen said finally. "This may not be the work of an akuma, but it's _something_ mysterious… we're just going to have to find out."

Lenalee nodded. "If you'll excuse us – may we investigate, Miss Black?" She gave a slight bow of politeness, then glanced at Lavi, who had managed to find his way into the entrance hall by invading the woman's personal space. Allen was about to follow her when he noticed that the apartment's occupant was now behind him, and muttering to herself.

"That old lady – she's too nosy, I'll have to find a way to dispose of her…"

It was _definitely_ something he wasn't intended to overhear, but her carelessness was certainly worrisome.

"Ah… Miss…" He stepped back to allow her to pass through the door ahead of him. "After you?"

"Such a gentleman," she murmured, although in an icy tone. "No, please go ahead – I'll be there in a moment."

"Sure," he said, but she was already setting off down the stairs.

Inside the apartment, Lenalee and Lavi were attempting to look around for anything suspicious while touching as little as possible and making no mess – the latter, very unsuccessfully. At Allen's arrival, Lenalee glanced up and smiled reassuringly upon seeing his nervous look.

"Is she coming?" she asked.

"Yeah, but – I get the feeling that something isn't right," Allen confessed. "She changed attitudes so often; she doesn't seem to like children, but why would she let us in here without protest?"

"You didn't see her looking at our uniforms," Lavi pointed out. "Plenty of people know what they mean – she isn't going to argue with Exorcists from the Black Order."

"And it's not just that; she was talking to herself in the hall," the white-haired boy continued. "About that elderly lady we were talking to earlier – saying she needed to be _disposed_ of."

Lenalee shivered. "That doesn't sound very… comforting."

"At least we know we've got the right person," Lavi pointed out.

"For suspicion of strange activity, or for hitting on," Allen said sarcastically. Lavi glared at him, then muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like _brat_. As the younger boy was about to pick up a nearby cushion – pale green, and smelling oddly of cats – Lenalee halted in her movements.

"I think she's coming back," she said softly. The two male Exorcists quickly returned to an unobtrusive searching position, and, moments later, the door opened.

"Found anything?" Miss Black said acidly. Lenalee shook her head.

"There doesn't seem to be anything odd," she said politely. "Have you noticed anything strange recently in your home?"

"Certainly not – else I would have reported it myself, wouldn't I?"

"She's starting to scare me," Allen whispered under his breath to Lavi, who promptly kicked him in the knee, causing Allen to wince. The older woman turned a cool stare to the boy and narrowed her eyes, then seemed to remember something and stepped away calmly.

"Search on," she told them, turning to a door with a strange look on her face. "I'll… return in a moment, must fetch something."

As soon as she departed, Allen turned to face Lenalee, hissing, "Did you see that? Her smile was absolutely sinister!"

"I don't deny it," Lenalee told him. "It did look… odd."

"You two just have your minds made up already," Lavi muttered. "She's not as young as you two, and she's living on her own – of _course_ she's going to be a little suspicious, but that doesn't mean she's evil."

"Well- ow!" Lenalee had gone to search under another cushion, mustard yellow this time, and had suddenly withdrawn her hand. The other two Exorcists rushed over to check it – it was bleeding. As she pulled out a handkerchief and wrapped it around the wound, a long, shallow slash across her knuckles, she looked thoughtfully at the cushion.

"There's something behind there," she finished.

"Of course," Lavi said, "otherwise you wouldn't have that wound."

"No, I mean – there's _something_ – an animal, I think." Carefully, she reached for the cushion with her unwounded hand, touching only the front. "It's behind it – aha!"

Lenalee pulled away the cushion triumphantly and the cause of her wound was revealed, causing the trio to gasp in shock.

It was a giant, hairy, black spider.

Lenalee jumped back, barely suppressing a shriek; Allen's eyes were wide and he looked terrified. Lavi was not as strongly affected, but even he was surprised; that spider was the size of a teacup, and that wasn't including its legs!

The three remained staring cautiously at the spider until Miss Black, now without the apron, came back through the door, carrying what appeared to be a long, thin wooden rod. With a bored glance at the creature, then a distasteful glance at the blood dripping from Lenalee's hand to the floor, she sniffed.

"Foolish children, you could have hurt dear David," she cooed, scooping the spider into the crook of her arm and giving a sharp look to the Exorcists. "Removing his cover like that."

"You _named_ that thing?" Allen asked incredulously.

"It's a _pet_?" Lenalee gasped.

"Spiders aren't supposed to grow that large!" Lavi said, in an unquestioning tone.

"Well…" Miss Black stroked the creature's back gently; it flipped over and emitted what sounded suspiciously like a purr. "I may have used an Engorgement Charm on him, but it wasn't _that_ strong." She sounded slightly flattered. "He is such a good pet, too."

The younger Exorcists seemed to be in complete shock, but Lavi had definitely been listening. "Engorgement Charm? What-"

"Oh, silly me, I shouldn't have used such a term," the auburn-haired woman muttered with a sly smile that told him that whatever she shouldn't have said was very intentionally used. "Now I'll have to fix this mistake."

Lavi gave the others a quick glance; maybe Allen hadn't been such a brat for being so suspicious after all…

"A Memory Charm?" She seemed to be talking to herself. The Bookman apprentice quietly nudged the others, trying to get their attention; finally, they seemed to snap out of it and quickly turned their attention back to him. "No, they'll just be told to return here, they _are_ from the Order, after all…" Lavi motioned to the woman, then to the door, trying to convey that they should leave while she was distracted. They seemed to get the message. "The killing curse?" Everyone flinched at that, but quietly made their way to the door. "But then I'll have to dispose of the bodies – oh, it's no use trying to leave," she told them as they reached the door. "I've locked it."

Lenalee turned around, looking slightly panicked after hearing the talk of "killing". "Well – we've done looking; nothing suspicious here-"

"Right," Allen rushed to continue. "Perfectly normal place, it must have just been a… a dream or something, you know old women-"

"So if you don't mind, we'll just be going," Lavi finished.

"Oh no. No, I don't think that's possible." She was giving them a smile that clearly said _I have nasty things in store for you._ "You've seen and heard a bit too much for that."

"We'll forget everything," Lavi assured her quickly. "Nothing out of the ordinary – no spiders."

Miss Black frowned. "I wasn't referring to David. Aha!" She snapped her long fingers; apparently, David had been set down while they were sneaking away. "There _is_ that spell that I've always wanted to try… the Ministry certainly wouldn't let me if they knew about it, but it will get rid of you _and_ leave no evidence behind… perfect."

The Exorcists exchanged nervous glances. "G-get rid of us?" Allen asked. "We won't come back if t-that's what you want; n-nothing odd here, remember?" The others nodded, but the woman didn't appear convinced.

"You won't be coming back here anyway," she murmured, "at least, not to this apartment."

"You're not going to _kill_ us!" Lenalee cried.

"Oh heavens no, that would be _such_ an inconvenience… no, I do believe I will simply ensure your lack of meddling. Bad enough that Muggles have found out about this – can't have anyone running off and telling the Ministry about such behaviour, now, can I…" She raised the strange wooden stick and smiled nastily. "Enjoy what remains of your life."

It was immediately obvious that despite the strange words and movements of the innocuous-looking stick, this was _not_ a joke. Allen only had time to grab Lenalee's wrist before the world began to spin and all that he could hear was Miss Black's laughter-

-and then he felt an explosive pain in his forehead and the feeling of his face hitting stone.

Allen sat up quickly, wiping away the blood trickling down his face and nudged the semi-conscious body of Lenalee with his free hand. She stirred, and finally her violet eyes opened fully and focused on him.

"Allen-kun?" she murmured dazedly. He pulled her up to sit next to him and nodded silently. "Oh good," she continued, nearly falling over onto him. "Sorry about this – it's just – I – don't know, but – I can't seem to…" He nodded again and placed a hand on her shoulder to keep her steady; she smiled gratefully. "What about Lavi?"

"He's…" Allen glanced over her shoulder to the third member of their party. "Over there."

"Alive?"

Lavi was currently making a sound that reminded Allen of a wounded dog in need of attention – the dog, that is, not Lavi.

"Yes."

"…'s good. Oh!" She blinked furiously, finally gaining some sense of balance, and reached up to touch Allen's forehead. "You're bleeding!"

"Am I?" In his concern for Lenalee he'd completely forgotten the pain. "Ow! It hurts…"

"Yeah, let me see…" She brushed away his (nonexistent) bangs and took a look at the wound. "Your pentacle's bleeding."

"It's not a _thing_," he said sourly. "It's a scar."

"Close enough… oh, it looks like you've got a stone or something lodged in there-" Allen had no time to react before her fingernails were wedged into his skin for the briefest of moments. When she withdrew her hand, covered in blood and clutching what seemed to be a tiny pebble, he suddenly felt faint.

"That… hurts. A lot."

"Allen-kun, you've had worse," she told him reproachfully. "And you're upset about a _stone_?"

"Well, I'm not experiencing the pain of having an eye taken out or a wound in my heart right now, right?!" Well, maybe the second – Lenalee's look wasn't exactly heartwarming at that moment; in fact, it didn't look like she was very pleased with him.

"No, but – I completely forgot about that!" she cried. "You _did_ have a hole in your heart, didn't you?! And you're still on these missions and everything, putting yourself in _more_ danger, and you were so lucky to survive-"

_Shit_, he thought. _And now she's crying because of me… _That definitely hurt. Hesitantly, he shifted his hand from her shoulder to her back and gently patted it. "Um, it's okay… I'm fine now, right? It doesn't even really hurt anymore…"

Lavi gave a loud cough. "If you two are done with your moment now…"

"What?" As the older Exorcist nodded to the careful placements of his hands (Lenalee's back, and – how had that other one gotten into her hand? That was certainly a mystery!), Allen pulled back slightly, face quickly growing a dark red. "Okay, right – Lenalee, it's okay, you don't need to cry – what is it, Lavi?"

"In case you haven't noticed," Lavi said, now grinning widely at the two, "we're not in an apartment anymore."

They weren't, Allen realized as he looked around them. In fact, they were sitting on a stone walkway that led to a decorated fountain, and then to a tall, white stone building set a distance away from other buildings, which surrounded the Exorcists. Lenalee was currently facing the street, which held other mysteries.

"Allen-kun" she said quietly, her tears drying but violet eyes set in a look of shock, "what's that?"


	2. Scroll 2

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: I'm supposed to get the seventh book tomorrow, and it's too late to change anything now. Why couldn't Allen-kun and Lenalee get married and have three kids, I ask you? Why can't they?! Well, I suppose if Hoshino-sensei wants…

Thirteen pages in my tiny font and still only one recognizable HP character. But there's more of a plot, I guess.

* * *

Scroll 2: If It's an Akuma and a Carriage, Does That Mean It's a Transformer?

"Allen-kun" she said quietly, her tears drying but violet eyes set in a look of shock, "what's that?"

He followed her finger and nearly fell over again. There were… well, he couldn't describe them very well, but – it couldn't be – they were brightly coloured carriages, but there was something odd…

"They don't have horses," she explained. "They're like carriages, but it doesn't look like wood, and there aren't any horses."

"Then – what's moving them? You don't think…" Allen gave Lenalee and Lavi a frightened look. "_Akuma_?"

Lavi shook his head. "I don't think so – they're _like_ akuma, but if they really were, wouldn't you have seen it, Allen?"

"Yeah, I suppose." He didn't look convinced, though.

"Maybe they run on Dark Matter," Lenalee suggested.

Allen hesitated, then glanced at the street again. "But there are so many of them."

"Then…" She shrugged. "Well, you saw – oh no, you didn't see – there were many akuma in Japan, more than I could have imagined. It isn't unreasonable to think of this much Dark Matter, after that. Could we be back in Japan?"

"This doesn't look like Japan," Lavi pointed out. "See, there are people over there, and they're not all Asian… Japan was isolated until a few decades ago; there shouldn't be this many non-Asians if we were there."

"What about another country?" Lenalee suggested.

"Not likely – I haven't seen anything like this before, either… those akuma things, or this kind of architecture either," Lavi said apologetically. "We'd have to be in some kind of new country altogether."

Allen nodded. "And I've been to many countries too; this doesn't look familiar at all."

"Then…" Lenalee gave them looks that said _you clearly aren't as intelligent as I am_. "Why don't we _ask someone_?"

"But…" Lavi looked appalled. "That's…"

"…not right." Allen agreed. "We can't do that."

Lenalee gave them each a withering look, then placed a hand on Allen's shoulder and pushed herself to her feet (removing her hand from his, Allen noted, slightly disappointed). She immediately made her way towards the nearest pedestrian, a young man dressed in clothing similar to Lavi's Exorcist uniform: a short jacket, tighter under-shirt, and loose shorts. His dark hair was spiked and he appeared to be leaning against a street-lamp, staring nonchalantly at the street while smoke wafted from one of his hands.

"Excuse me, sir," she said, approaching him. "I'm so sorry to bother you, but may I request to know the name of this…," she glanced around quickly, "city?"

He looked at her with piercing dark eyes, then suddenly grinned and burst into laughter. Allen and Lavi, who had by now stood up and followed her, watched the scene with a knowing look. The man pointed with the smoking hand to a newspaper lying by the side of the road, then winked at Lenalee.

"That a come-on?" he asked her, still grinning. Lenalee gave him a confused look.

"I-I'm sorry, sir, I don't know what you-"

"Any excuse to talk to me, right?"

"Er..." Fortunately, Lenalee's mind worked faster than those of her companions, and while they remained confused (although suspicious), she was already gaping in shock at his comments. "No! That's not true, that's – I just really wanted to know where we are-"

"_Sure_… 's cute, she's embarrassed!" His grin widened. "You don't have to deny it, sweets. Checkin' me out, 's fine when it's a hot young thing like you, long as you're not underage." His other hand reached out behind her, about to grab-

-and Allen's and Lavi's hands immediately caught it in mid-air.

"Where're you reaching," Lavi said with a nasty smirk at the older man.

"You shouldn't be touching a lady you just met," Allen added, giving the man a look of disgust.

"Don't interfere with adult affairs, boy," he snapped back, snarling. Allen's grip promptly tightened, jamming fingernails into the stranger's skin.

"I was asking for information," Lenalee said icily, "not the _date_." The double-meaning was obvious. Scowling, the man jerked his hand back and rubbed the injured area, smoke still trailing from his fingers – it was a cigarette, she noted, as his fingers unclenched slightly. He looked up again, noted the distinctly unfriendly looks on the faces of the Exorcists, and gave a familiar "che" and strolled away calmly.

"Lenalee!" Allen looked shocked. "Why did you do that?!"

"Do what?" She feigned ignorance.

"You-you know, ask someone!" He looked worried, she noted; was this how she looked after he risked his life with the akuma back in Germany? Except she'd been crying… "Who knows what he would have done to you!"

"That bastard," Lavi muttered, his hand straying away from his hammer and making a fist (had he really been so close to using Innocence?). "Thinking he can just say shit like that."

"Right," Lenalee muttered, feeling slightly ashamed. "Well – he pointed to that paper, so maybe it wasn't so bad that I asked after all? I wasn't hurt or anything," she added, seeing their unconvinced looks. "I can defend myself, can't I? I'm an Exorcist too!"

The other two Exorcists said nothing but looked unconvinced. Lenalee gave an exasperated sigh and picked up the newspaper lying by the side of the road.

"London Times… so we're still in London."

"This doesn't look like any part of London, though," Allen told her. "And I lived here for a few years."

He did? There seemed to be plenty of things Lenalee didn't know about him, even now…

"Then how can these strange carriages be explained?" Lavi mused. "Obviously, that woman did something weird – you don't think this is another _world_, do you?"

"So you've stopped caring about that age difference, then?" Allen asked, smirking.

"Wha- _no_, Allen, she isn't Road. You're such a brat."

"Well, she's the only one who can go through worlds like that," the youngest Exorcist explained. "And that's a Noah power, isn't it? No other normal person would be able to do that."

"She was odd enough to _be_ one!" Lenalee exclaimed. "What with that giant spider – what did she say she'd done to it… engorge… something like that."

"Engorgement Charm," Lavi told her. "That's what she said it was."

"_Whatever_ it was… and it was huge, too."

A few metres away, a brown-haired young man in a long trenchcoat and pinstriped trousers looked up from his upside-down newspaper.

"I think she _was_ referring to its size," the red-haired Exorcist said, grinning. Lenalee looked as if she was about to smack him. "She mentioned something else about a charm – Memory Charm – what was that about?"

"Why would we know? We didn't even remember what she said!" Allen exclaimed. "We were too busy worrying about our imminent deaths!"

"Whatever… but those don't sound like _normal_ things." Lavi paused for a moment, then gave Allen an apologetic look. "Maybe you were right about magic."

"Lavi…" Allen sighed and shook his head wearily. "You said it yourself, there's no such thing as-"

"Excuse me." A man tapped Lavi on the shoulder, smiling weakly and clutching a newspaper in his free hand. "Did you, by any chance, say… magic?" Lavi nodded. "And… charms? Engorgement? Memory? That kind of thing, you said?" Again, he nodded. The man's smile immediately faded into a worried look. "Oh dear…"

"You overheard us, sir?" Lenalee asked, excited.

"Indeed," he murmured. "Did you hear those terms in a conversation, perhaps?"

The Exorcists exchanged a surprised look; did he not feel he had an obligation to apologize for listening to their conversation?

"No," Lenalee said slowly. "She was talking to herself…"

"She knew we were there," Allen said quickly.

"I see," the man murmured, the worry intensifying. "And that was all? Nothing to discuss about it, correct?"

Lavi felt the need to crush the man's slightly hopeful look with a simple question: "...You wouldn't happen to know where exactly we are, do you?" At the man's crestfallen look, he hurried to add, "Oh, we know this is London, but it's… rather different from the place we came from, and we were perhaps wondering if this wasn't…?"

"If he's from another London, he's not going to _know_!" Lenalee whispered. "We'll seem… I don't know, mad or something!"

"Compared to who?" Allen asked. "If she sent us _here_ – if they're all strange people like her, with the enormous pet spider and the strange words and that stick thing, then-"

"Stick?" the man asked weakly. None of the Exorcists decided to answer this; he looked ill enough.

"They'll just think we're mad because we're not like them," Lavi explained. "It's like the people who don't know English."

Allen opened his mouth to say something, but clearly could not think of a response. He sighed, and turned to the mysterious man, who was now muttering something to himself in a panicked tone and looking worried.

"Excuse me sir," he said hesitantly, "we don't seem _that_ mad, do we?"

The man blinked at them. "Mad? Oh heavens no, not mad. Confused, but not mad." He gave a resigned sigh and nodded to the trio. "But I'm afraid you'll have to follow me – no other choice – leave this to the Obliviators – thank goodness it isn't far from here…"

Lenalee, Allen and Lavi exchanged glances; what was with mysterious people and talking to themselves about strange things?

"Right, follow me," he finally said. "You don't mind walking, do you? It's just a kilometre or two away from here."

Wondering what "it" was, the three Exorcists followed the man down the street, continuing to give nervous or curious glances to the akuma-like carriages, and occasionally wondering aloud at the interesting clothing worn by humans in this London (although this was really just Lavi leering at some of the more scantily-clothed women, and Lenalee and Allen smacking him). It wasn't as if they couldn't handle any dangerous situation, after all. They _were_ Exorcists.

Finally, he led them down a mostly deserted street with paint on the walls and motioned to a tall red box with glass panels set in the sides. "In there."

"But it's so tiny," Allen whined. "And what if there's one of those akuma-like things in there?"

Lavi glanced to the top of the box. "It's just a telephone box, Allen," he said irritably. "Brat…"

Scowling, Allen followed the other two into the box. The man climbed in after them, closed the door, and reached over to the telephone. "Ah, can't see the number… can someone please dial six, two, four, four, two… whoever's closest… ah, thank you."

The Exorcists jumped as a female voice suddenly sounded through the box.

"Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."

"Yes, it's Lewis Naylor, Accidental Magic Reversal Squad" the man said quickly, "with three guests; I need to take them to Obliviator Headquarters."

"Thank you. Visitors, please take the badges and attack them to the front of your robes."

"Robes?" Allen whispered to Lenalee. He was immediately distracted by Lavi handing them a pair of badges; they were square, silver, and had the words _Memory Modification _engraved on them.

Suddenly, the floor shuddered and the box seemed to drop into the ground. Lenalee jumped and clutched Allen's coat; Lavi grabbed onto the trailing edge of Lenalee's open sleeve. They stared in shock as the ground seemed to swallow them entirely, yet the man – Lewis Naylor, he had said that his name was – seemed completely unaffected.

Finally, the box became filled with a golden light and the shuddering stopped.

"The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant day," the voice said, and the doors opened. Somehow, the Exorcists were not at all surprised to find themselves in a long hall of darkened wood, with gilded fireplaces set along the walls. Lenalee gasped, and the two boys followed her gaze to the ceiling; it was a beautiful blue, with strange moving golden symbols.

"It's lovely," she murmured. "So much warmer than the Order."

At the mention of the Order, Lewis jumped again. "This is worse than I thought," he moaned. "At least we're already at the Ministry, and it can't get much worse…"

"Look!" Lavi pointed, tugging on Lenalee's sleeve. "They're… the fireplaces…"

"They're going in!" Allen gasped. "Won't they be burned?"

"And coming out, too," Lenalee agreed. "On the left."

They were suddenly pushed down the hallway – Lavi had suspected it was Lewis until he noticed the man was ahead of them. "Nothing to see here," he said, his voice containing more confidence than they'd yet heard. "Keep walking."

Finally, they arrived at a pair of golden gates at the end of the hallway. Lewis nodded to the man sitting at a desk nearby; he was sitting under a sign that said "Security" ("Like the gatekeeper?" Allen asked Lenalee), and dressed to match the ceiling. "Good morning, Eric."

"Mornin'", the man grunted.

"I'm escorting these… ah, visitors… to the Obliviator Headquarters."

"No wands?"

"No," Lewis reassured the man. "We won't be staying long, either."

"Good luck," Eric muttered, and turned to the woman behind the trio. They felt the familiar force against their backs again, and followed the older man to a smaller hall with numerous golden grilles. Lewis quickly found the smallest crowd to stand in; within a few minutes, a shadow had passed in front of the doors and the grille slid open, revealing another box.

"Get in," he assured them. "It's only a lift."

"What's a-" Allen started to ask, but he was cut off by a crashing sound and the sudden ascent of the box.

"We're going to Level Three," Lewis told them. He looked much more relaxed than he had been prior to their arrival at this strange building – if it _was_ a building; Allen didn't know how a telephone box could contain this, but he'd seen Road's strange abilities, and decided it was best for them to remain silent about this mystery until they learned where they are. Perhaps it wasn't unusual here.

"What's that?" And the silence was broken by Lavi, who was pointing to a pale purple piece of paper hovering at the top of the box(?).

"Inter-departmental memos… no, it's just a paper aeroplane. Nothing more." Lewis looked as if he expected this answer to be satisfactory, but the Exorcists were left even more puzzled.

"What's an aeroplane?" Lavi asked. A few of the other people in the crowded box gave him odd stares.

"What's a - how could anyone – this may be a bigger mess than I thought," Lewis sighed. "Ah, here we are – Level Three."

The grille slid open – Allen suddenly realized that one had reappeared; he had been too distracted with the flying violet papers that he hadn't paid attention to the movement of the box – and the four of them exited the box, along with a young man and woman, both dressed in those strange articles of clothing that the man at the desk had worn. He was tempted to ask what they were, but wouldn't it be rude to do so? Definitely best to stay quiet.

They immediately were led down a long corridor with doors along the walls; the strangely-dressed man and woman quickly disappeared behind one of those doors. The Exorcists, however, passed through a number of heavy oak doors at the ends before Lewis finally stopped in front of an open one. "Just wait out here for a minute, all right?" he said reassuringly before entering the room and closing the door behind him. Almost immediately, the sound of muffled conversation came from the room.

Lavi gave a relaxed sigh and slid down the wall to sit comfortably on the floor.

"Bit of an unusual place here, isn't it?" he asked, grinning.

Lenalee nodded absentmindedly. "It is…"

"I wonder if they have a cafeteria here," Allen mused. "Lenalee and I haven't had anything to eat since last night."

"It's still the morning, Allen-kun," she murmured. "It's strange to think about it this way, but we've only been here for a few hours."

"It feels that way," Lavi muttered.

"A few hours…" Allen gave them worried looks. "That was like the situation in the Ark."

Lavi straightened up. "We're not in the Ark!" he said, frustrated. "We can't be – the Earl isn't here, and so far we haven't been put in danger-"

"Not of our lives," Allen corrected him, glancing at Lenalee. Her cheeks turned pink, but she didn't respond.

"…and we don't know if that woman was a Noah," Lavi added. "Anyway, the Ark was destroyed, wasn't it?"

"Then where could we possibly be?"

"This is London," Lenalee said quietly with a glance at the door. "It isn't familiar to us, though."

"Then is it the power of a Noah?" Allen asked her, lowering is voice. "At least, do you think it is, Lenalee?"

"I don't know," she answered. "That woman wasn't Road, but maybe this is the action of another Noah."

Lavi shrugged. "And would a Noah do all that crazy stuff? Having a spider and saying those weird things, I mean. And the man here seemed to know about it."

There was a long silence as the three reflected on what could possibly have happened to put them in this situation. Finally, Lavi spoke again.

"We followed that man because he knew what that woman said." When the other two nodded, he continued. "Isn't it convenient that someone like that was nearby? It doesn't seem… right."

"You don't think we should have followed him?" Lenalee asked.

"Well…" Lavi ran a hand through his thick red hair nervously. "Maybe we shouldn't have. This could be a trap."

"We didn't have a choice." Allen sounded resigned, yet there was a hint of hope in his voice. "He seems nice. I trust him to help us find a way back to the London we know about."

"How do you even know he's doing that?" Lavi demanded. "He just told us to follow him!"

"There are so many unfamiliar things out there," Allen answered. "At the end of this, we should have a better idea about where we are."

"London," the red-haired Exorcist muttered sarcastically. "Allen, you're too trusting."

Allen said nothing, but Lenalee touched his shoulder reassuringly. "I think that's a good thing," she whispered, with a weak smile. Lavi turned his head away, but there was now a small smile on his face, too.

Seconds later, the door opened to reveal Lewis and another young man; his hair was dark and wavy, and he had an earring in one ear (a circular hoop, like Lavi's, who stood up almost immediately). Allen opened his mouth to introduce them, but the new man waved a hand at him in a silencing gesture, and began to look them over carefully. Finally, he frowned, and looked back at the older man.

"Those are Muggle clothes?" he asked. "On the boys, anyway."

Lewis shrugged. "You're the young one, aren't you? Always fashionable…"

"But I haven't seen those kinds of boots except in history books," the man pointed out, nodding towards Allen and Lavi. "And it's _September_; why would anyone be wearing such a heavy coat?"

"That's what I brought them to you for, David." The Exorcists exchanged wide-eyed glances, and immediately had to suppress their laughter; even if the large spider had been terrifying to see, this man looked anything but menacing. He had a strangely relaxed look that contrasted with any worry he showed. "That witch must've played around with them for a while before letting them go." Lewis chewed on his lower lip nervously. "And with the times being what they are, it's a miracle that she didn't kill them in the end."

"Muggle-baiting," the other man – David – agreed. "Terrible thing."

"Anyway, I should get back to my office… was just returning from an incident when I found these three. Might have a bit of a hard time, though; they don't seem to know London very well, and that tall one even asked what an aeroplane was."

"She put a Memory Charm on them, then?" David cringed. "This is going to be harder than I thought."

"Excuse me," Allen interrupted. The two men turned to look at him. "I don't think she did that. She didn't seem to think that it would be effective in preventing us from returning."

David shook his head. "She must have. It'd explain your confusion." He motioned to the door. "You'll have to tell me everything about this... lady? She is an adult, I presume? Yes, you must tell me about her. Step inside, please." He nodded to Lewis. "Thanks. They don't seem to know very much about us, but if they told anyone…"

"We haven't," Lavi assured him. Ignoring them, David reached out to shake Lewis's hand, and the older man departed down the hall without even glancing at the three that he had just left in the hands of another stranger. The dark-haired man gave the three a confused look, and then motioned for them to enter.

The windowless office inside was rather plain and undecorated. The Exorcists had been used to Komui's library; this was much smaller, neater, and only contained a stack of papers stacked on a desk, four chairs – one behind, and now three in front - and a silver picture frame containing a black-and-white image of a sleeping cat.

"It's very cute," Allen said, pointing to the picture.

"Isn't he?" David smiled broadly at the three as he sat down on the other side of the desk. "That's Edgar… he's about three now, wonderfully lazy but such an intelligent cat. Very nice." He nodded absentmindedly, then seemed to remember why the three were here and the smile disappeared. A sharp look entered his black eyes. "Do you know why Lewis brought you here?"

"We're lost," Lenalee said quietly, hands folded neatly in her lap. "We met a suspicious person who said some odd things, and then sent us to…" She paused, trying to think of the proper word. "…well, we were in London before, but this isn't familiar at all."

"With strange machines," Lavi added. "The carriages."

"_Carriages_? You can't mean _cars_?"

The trio exchanged glances and shrugged. "That word is unfamiliar to us," Allen explained.

"Then this is quite a bad situation after all," David mused, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "You don't seem to be aware of modern technology, and you didn't recognize London – how did you know where this is?"

"We found a newspaper," Lenalee confessed. "I don't have it with me, though… did I leave it back there?"

Allen shook his head and reached into a deep pocket in his coat. "You passed it to me when you started to talk to Lavi. I suppose I folded it up without thinking." He turned to the older man, who shook his head briefly.

"I don't need to see it," he murmured. "So you don't have any recollection of this place, yet you claim to have been in London earlier." He produced a pen from under the desk and grabbed a piece of paper, scribbling furiously. Without looking up, he continued to inquire about their situation. "And the strange terms that you have heard… you overheard a woman speaking to herself?"

"About us," Lavi corrected him. "She even mentioned killing…"

"How did you come into contact with her?"

"We're members of the Black Order," Allen explained. "We'd received reports of… strange activity there – disappearing people, strange noises, that sort of thing – and were investigating. They came from her part of the building, and we were questioning her… I think it was because we discovered her pet."

"It was a spider," Lenalee added. "A really big one. She seemed to think that our shock at its size was a compliment."

"Indeed." More scribbling. "And do you remember anything else about this witch, by any chance?"

"Hey, isn't that going a little far-" Lavi started, but was cut off by Allen's glare.

"Her name was Emily Black," Lenalee answered, ignoring the two males on either side of her. "She was about… thirty, I suppose, with reddish hair… it was curly…"

"Black?" The older man frowned at this. "I don't recall any members of the family with that first name… suppose she could've married, but-"

"She wasn't," Lavi interrupted. "One of her neighbours said so."

"Even so…" David leaned back in his chair and chewed on his pen. "A member of the family… nearly all Death Eaters, except for that fugitive, and he was a bit of an anomaly anyway." He began to tap out a rhythm absentmindedly on the desk. "So," he summarized, "you remember going into a woman's flat, finding a large spider, and she said some strange things and you were here, in London, without knowing anything of recent technology?"

"That sounds about right," Allen agreed. "Is there any way to return to the London we know?"

"You're probably from _here_," David explained. "There's only one London, England. I have reason to believe that she modified your memory to prevent you from remembering anything, however, and that may be difficult to restore. Your memory, that is."

"But…" Lavi didn't seem convinced. "She said that she didn't do that. And why are you telling us all of this? Bringing us to this strange place, throwing around terms that ordinary people shouldn't know-"

"Oh, we'll modify your memory once this is all over with, too," David said cheerfully. "Muggles don't need to know these things."

"That word again," Allen muttered. "What does it mean?"

The dark-haired man merely smiled mysteriously at him. "You won't remember anyway."

"Wait…" Lenalee had taken the paper from Allen and had apparently been reading one or two of the articles within it. "All of this seems strange. The names, the words, the events… the places are the same, but nothing else is."

"We already know that," Allen told her. "This is a strange London."

"And…" She looked as if she'd suddenly realised something. "Didn't it seem unusually warm for March, Allen-kun?"

"March?" David had suddenly sat up in his chair, as if he'd had the same thought. "But it's the end of September…"

"But then we're in a different time altogether!" Lenalee exclaimed.

"A different time…" And now Lavi seemed to understand it too. The slightly less intelligent Allen was forced to give puzzled looks to the pair while trying to follow their scattered thoughts.

"It's fall now, not spring."

"But would a city change so much in just a few months?"

"We never thought of a Noah that could change the time!"

"We didn't see her, though. Even Road had to step into a dream with her victims."

"A time-travelling spell… I didn't know that could be done."

The white-haired Exorcist glanced down at the paper in Lenalee's hand. "According to this, it's September 29th…"

"…'ninety-six, yeah." David nodded. "What was the date when you entered that flat?"

"March twenty-ninth, ninety-six," Lavi murmured. "So it's only been six months."

There was a confused silence for a moment before Lenalee had a terrible thought.

"…_which_ ninety-six?"

David paused. "Nineteen ninety-six, the same as on that paper. Why-" He stopped at the horrified looks on the Exorcists' faces. "You don't mean…"

"We left in eighteen ninety-six," Lenalee whispered.

It seemed they had discovered the source of their confusion.


	3. Scroll 3

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: I'm not making lots of money for this, unlike the real authours. Can't I just have my DGM clock already?

I promise you they will stop talking soon. I swear this took forever. Is David annoying? I really hate OCs, which is probably why he has no personality whatsoever. He's not important. He's a plot device.

* * *

Scroll 3: Lenalee Is Polite (And Very Cute, Too, According To Allen)

"So…" Even David didn't seem as if he could believe it. "You're from _a hundred years_ in the past?"

"And six months," Allen added. "But it certainly seems that way."

"Shit…" David quickly glanced around the office, then reached into his desk and grabbed one of the purple paper aeroplanes that the Exorcists had seen earlier, in the moving thing. Chewing on his pen when he paused to think, the dark-haired man quickly scribbled a message on the paper and tossed it into the hallway. "This is going to be a major problem."

"You made it sound as if you knew why she could do this," Lenalee mused. "Would that mean that you know how she did it? And then, couldn't you send us back?"

"It's not that simple," David told them, running a hand through his wavy hair. "We know the source of her powers – well, that she's a witch – but we don't know the exact spell that she used. None of us are aware of any time-travelling spell."

"Hey, I told you not to call her that!" Lavi protested. "Anyway, witches are from fairy tales. They don't _really _exist. It's just a nasty word, isn't it?"

"A nasty word?" The Exorcists were met with another mysterious smile, although the prior worry at their situation had not disappeared from the man's face. "No, witches are very real, and they can be any female, really. It just refers to a female who can practice magic."

"Magic… but that can't be real, can it?" Even Lenalee looked as if she didn't believe in it, and she'd defended Allen only hours (years?) earlier. "It's a pleasant thought, but there really isn't such a thing as that."

David groaned and looked back at the door. "I probably shouldn't have told you that – I'm terrible at explanations like these, and if I wasn't supposed to say anything…"

Just then, another aeroplane zoomed into the room. David reached out to catch it, fumbled a little, and then finally managed to eagerly tear the thing open and read the message inside. When he was finished, he breathed a sigh of relief and sat back in the chair, relaxed.

"Everything should be resolved soon," he told them. "This kind of thing usually isn't a job for the Minister, but under these circumstances, it might be best that he becomes aware of it."

"That we're from a different time, and have no way of returning?"

David nodded at Lenalee's question. "Such a spell would be devastating if it were not known to our side at this time. If it falls into their hands…"

"Side? You don't mean…" Lavi leaned forward, surprised. "There's a war?!"

"None other. And with no knowledge of this world, yet mixed up with magic that should not concern Muggles, you three would be especially vulnerable."

"We've heard that term before," Allen murmured. "Yet we still don't have any idea what it means."

"Ah… it just means a non-magical person," David explained. "Like you three."

"It sounds odd," Lenalee muttered. Allen nodded.

"That's the way things are. Ah, and here-" David was cut off when another aeroplane zoomed into his office, smacking him on the head. He unfolded it and promptly began to read, cursing softly when he finished and crumbled up the violet paper. "I don't believe it… the Minister wants to see you personally… must have something to do with the war; appearances being important and all… can't imagine what that has to do with you, though. He'll be here any minute." At their confused looks, he sighed and began to explain. "The Minister for Magic is… well, he's like the Prime Minister, except for all the magical people. We," he waved around the office, "are in the Ministry of Magic at this very moment. Everyone here works for the Ministry."

"So organized," Lavi breathed, in awe. "I've learned about world governments and their history, but I've never heard of this. Is it recent?"

David shook his head. "There should be a Ministry in the time you came from, as well."

Lavi was speechless. Fortunately, his silence was interrupted by the arrival of a fifth figure.

The door swung open to reveal a man that reminded Allen oddly of a lion. His tawny, bushy hair was streaked with gray, and his sharp eyes were oddly catlike with their golden colour. He strode into the room and nodded at the man behind the desk, who promptly stood up and moved towards the door.

"Good afternoon, Minister," David nodded, gesturing to the seat. "You may interrogate them here."

"Thank you, Potter." The Minister glanced up and down the younger man, finally giving him a knowing look. "You wouldn't happen to be related to-"

"Distant cousins. Fathers were cousins, anyway," David explained. "Never met the boy, though."

"Famous. Completely devoted to Dumbledore, though."

"Pity… with his celebrity support, we might actually be able to do more than just capture minor criminals for the image."

"Indeed, indeed. Ah, but are these the three you were speaking about?" The catlike man had finally noticed the three teenagers in front of the desk, who had turned around to watch the newcomer (having no idea what the conversation was about). "The ones who seem to have been chronologically displaced?"

David nodded. "I tried to tell them about magic," he explained. "They're rather confused."

"No surprise there," the Minister murmured, surveying the trio carefully. "If it really was some kind of forgotten Dark Magic, even a powerful wizard could be perplexed, and magic hasn't changed as much as Muggle technology in the past century." He strode over to the chair behind the desk and sat down slowly, finally nodding to the younger man at the door. "It might be best if…"

"Understandably, Minister. In these days, anyone could be…" He lapsed into silence, finally exiting through the door and closing it behind him. When the sound of footsteps had finally faded, the Minister began to speak, although never completely letting down his guard.

"Not that I believe knowledge of you would be of any use to He Who Must Not Be Named," he said quietly, half speaking to himself. "You're simply three Muggle children who stumbled across a witch at the wrong time, and found yourselves here, in the middle of a war." He sighed sadly. "The official policy of the Ministry is to protect young people, too… you know, if you ever return, it would probably be best for you to forget everything that happened here?"

"She thought of that," Lenalee told him. "Making us forget, but we're from the Order so-"

"The Order?!" The Minister's eyes sharpened, giving him the look of a lion who had seized its prey. "And how would you know of such a recent and secretive organization, especially if you _are_ merely Muggle children?"

Allen, Lenalee and Lavi exchanged glances. "I thought the Order had existed for a long time," Allen said slowly. "Hundreds of years, at least."

"And the war with the Millenium Earl happened thousands of years ago," Lavi added.

"Does this mean there are Exorcists even in this time, too?" Lenalee asked the Minister. He held up his hand, and they became silent.

"Perhaps we speak of different Orders," the older man explained. "These concepts are unfamiliar to me, although historians may be aware of your particular organization. At any rate, this can be decided before you leave. Before your arrival, even the thought of such a spell was inconceivable, but if this is known to any Dark witches or wizards, we must learn to defend ourselves against it by learning of it ourselves."

"So there is a war even now," Lavi said quietly. The other two Exorcists remained silent.

"The one I speak of is between wizards, not Muggles. Most of our kind have lived through the years of torment when He Who Must Not Be Named roamed the earth-"

"Why can't he be named? Ah, sorry for interrupting, Minister," Allen added.

"It draws his attention. However, fifteen years ago, he was vanquished by a small boy whom he could not kill, his followers – known as Death Eaters – were imprisoned, and the magical community enjoyed peace yet again… that is, until last year…" The older man trailed off, anger sparking in his tawny eyes. "He has returned, and this past summer has been filled with the deaths of prominent witches and wizards who have defied him, as well as the destruction of habitations of wizards and Muggles alike."

"That sounds terrible… so much unnecessary ending of life." Ignoring Lenalee's questioning glance, Allen continued, looking determinedly into the Minister's eyes. "Is there anything we can possibly do to prevent this?"

"Three Muggle children? Ha!" An amused smile spread across his face, and Allen quickly grew embarrassed, shifting backwards uncomfortably. "No, the best thing for you three is to stay hidden, out of the way somewhere until the spell can be re-discovered and modified. The Ministry certainly isn't safe for children…" He frowned, thoughtful. "It might look strange for parentless children to be roaming the streets, too – I don't suppose you three are at least seventeen?"

"I am," Lavi said cheerfully, "but those two aren't."

"How unfortunate. And with Dumbledore missing – _damn _that Potter boy for being so loyal! – ah, but you," he nodded to Lavi, "wouldn't be able to attend, since it would be too much to hope that you were seventeen exactly, or recently eighteen."

"In August," the red-haired boy muttered. "So I'm a bit old, aren't I."

"Yet Hogwarts might be the safest place for you three after all. That's the magical school in England," he explained quickly, seeing the confusion on their faces. "It may be difficult to trust someone such as Dumbledore, but I can't believe that he would allow harm to come to children, even Muggles. Great champion for their rights, that Headmaster." With that, he stood up and walked towards the door, turning around once he reached it to deliver one last message. "I'll send someone to take you to Diagon Alley for supplies… can't have everyone knowing you three are Muggles, after all. Just blend in."

And with that, he was gone, and the three were left to converse amongst themselves for a few minutes.

"Magic," Lavi breathed. "You were right, Allen!"

The younger boy, however, did not seem to be in a triumphant mood. He grinned weakly at Lavi, but had none of the confidence that usually accompanied that smiling face. Lenalee, too, was giving a distinct aura of worry, hands folded calmly in her lap, yet with the same expression that she had worn at the Noah's dinner table back in Noah's Ark.

"So we're separated from everyone again," Allen said quietly.

"Nii-san must be so worried," Lenalee murmured. "I can't imagine how I can contact him."

"Telephone?" Lavi pointed to the device on the desk and grinned, but Lenalee didn't seem to notice it. The smile faded into a sad look, and he reached out to hold her left hand, as he had done in the Ark. "Be strong, okay, Lenalee? There's nothing we can do about this."

"We'll all go home together again, right?" Allen gave her a reassuring smile that didn't quite manage to cheer anyone up, and took her other hand. "We managed it before, didn't we? All we have to do is wait this time."

"I know," she said quietly. "And I can use my Innocence now, too… I shouldn't be feeling so weak, should I."

There was a long silence. "It's hard for everyone," Allen said finally. "So we all have to be strong."

"I know."

And none of them spoke again until the door opened and closed behind them, announcing David's return (he was now dressed in a plain pair of black pants and a black jacket). He didn't greet them, but merely strode over to the desk, ruffled through some papers and finally plucked a few from a pile.

"I'm supposed to take you to Diagon Alley by the Underground," he explained. "I'm sure you don't know what that is – don't be surprised – you can stay in the Leaky Cauldron for a night, that's an inn, until we can find someone to help you buy supplies tomorrow." He gestured to the door, and the three stood up in unison; the two boys released their grip on their companion's hands. "Follow me."

With one last glance at the neat office and the picture of the beautiful cat, the three followed David through the hallways, retracing the path they had taken with Lewis and finally exiting the Ministry into the alley painted with graffiti. Now that they had realized exactly where they were, the Exorcists were more than excited to have a good look at the buildings and technology around them. Everything looked so much newer, and there was so much life in the city! More than once, David was forced to slow down when Lenalee found something interesting in a shop window, or Allen found some new technology. When they finally reached the nearest Underground station, it was almost disappointing to them to have to leave the sights above them.

Being underground, there was nothing to marvel at anymore, so they discussed the sights for a time until Lavi suddenly exclaimed,

"Those carriages – I know what they are! They're automobiles!"

Lenalee and Allen gave him puzzled looks – David was quietly reading a newspaper – and he elaborated.

"Automobiles – they're a kind of carriage, only powered by combustion instead of horses, so you just need fuel to move them… like a train, right? They're really new; I think there are some in France and Germany, but they're not popular at all. It takes a lot to make them, I think."

"Mass production," David muttered from behind his paper. "They're mass produced now. Assembly line."

"What?"

"…Sorry," the man apologized. "Invented in the nineteen-twenties."

"An automobile," Allen said, in awe. "I've never actually seen one before, but I can't imagine that they look like _that_, back at home."

"They don't." Lavi shrugged. "They look just like horseless carriages, actually."

"They must be very convenient," Lenalee added.

"Seems that way. And successful, too…"

"Stand up; we're almost there." David's voice surprised the trio, but the excitement to be back on the streets of London was stronger than the urge to continue their conversation, and they happily rushed back on to the streets.

A few minutes later, the dark-haired man stopped in front of a small, run-down pub. "We're here," David said in a monotone voice. "The Ministry is paying for you to stay the night, and tomorrow someone will be here to help you with school supplies."

"We're not actually going to study anything, are we?" Lenalee asked incredulously. "I mean – it would be wonderful to study magic and all, but is it even possible for us? Since we're…"

"It isn't. Someone like you could normally never attend that school, but you three don't have a choice. I suppose they'll just… keep you hidden or something. Blend in without attending classes. It'd look awfully suspicious if you didn't have even the necessary supplies," the Ministry worker explained. He opened the door, and motioned for the three to enter. "Most students don't perform much magic anyway. Ah, Tom, afternoon."

David had spoken to a small, bald, toothless old man who was wiping a glass behind the bar and grinning. The man – Tom – made his way over to the younger man and surveyed the three carefully. "These the ones who will be staying tonight?"

"Yes – we can't thank you enough for allowing them to stay, Tom."

"The Ministry's paying me," the old man said, shrugging. "While you're here, you want the usual?"

"No thanks," David said apologetically. "Have to get back to work after this."

"Of course, of course. The Ministry has high standards." Tom beckoned to the trio of Exorcists and made his way towards a passage behind the bar. "Your rooms will be this way. One for each of you, then? Plenty of empty rooms right now… not many willing to leave the safety of their own homes these days."

"Thank you," Allen said hesitantly to David. "For helping us and everything."

David smiled back. "I have some… relatives about your age. I wouldn't want them to be hurt either. And you like cats."

Lenalee tugged his sleeve and motioned for him to follow; he quickly turned his attention to the hall, the wooden staircase that they ascended, and the rooms that they were finally led to: numbers sixteen, seventeen and eighteen. Tom opened the door of the first one and led the three inside. The innkeeper snapped his fingers and a fire sprang up in the fireplace; the three Exorcists jumped at that.

"Just stay in here for now," he told them. "I'll just be finishing up the other two rooms, and I'm sure you three will want to chat amongst yourselves for some time. I'll bring up something to eat later; it might not be a good idea for you three to show yourselves downstairs. We have some… unusual customers on occasion." He winked, and closed the door behind him. The three Exorcists remained standing in the middle of the room until they exchanged glances; Lenalee and Allen moved to sit on the bed while Lavi took an oak chair across the room.

There was a long silence. Allen and Lenalee both watched the fire crackle and spark while Lavi preferred to stare at the floor, occasionally glancing up at the pair, and then the fire. Finally, he spoke, startling the other two.

"We're going to be here for a while, aren't we."

Allen looked up at him. "Not necessarily. It might only be for a few days."

"You heard the Minister, Allen! They haven't even found the spell – and there's a war; that's more important than sending three kids who got into this situation themselves back home!"

"Then there isn't anything we can do about it except protect ourselves, and whoever else we can, right?"

"Don't sound so resigned," Lavi growled as he stood up from his chair. Allen didn't look at him. "Aren't you angry at all?"

"What's the point in it?" Allen demanded, finally meeting Lavi's one-eyed stare and suddenly finding that it was filling with tears. _He must really miss everyone, too… _"Everyone is safe back home, aren't they? I know there are things I – we have to do there, and so I won't give up on returning home safely with everyone, but I can't let anyone here be put in danger because of that."

"I thought you were stronger than that," Lavi said quietly.

"Allen-kun is strong." The two boys turned to look at Lenalee, who hadn't said a word until now. "He is the strongest person I know, and… he's right, isn't he?" She raised her head, and Allen noticed that she was crying. "Everyone is safe at home, and we're all safe, too. And we will get home this time, won't we? We're not questioning that anymore."

"We could be here for months!" Lavi protested, but he had lost some of the passion that had fueled his earlier argument with Allen. "That's a long time to be separated from…"

"But we're not alone," she whispered, turning to the other two. "We have each other, and everyone else at home is all right."

"We have to protect ourselves for their sake," Allen murmured, placing his arm gently around Lenalee's shoulders. Even though she was still crying, she smiled. Lavi dropped his gaze to the floor again and dropped into the chair behind him.

"I'm going to be strong this time," she whispered to him. "I think I can do that now." He smiled back reassuringly.

"Thanks, Lenalee."

"So you two are going to find the positive side of this?" Lavi interrupted, giving Allen's arm a sly look. The younger boy blushed and pulled his arm back; Lenalee looked as if she was about to start laughing. "That's good, Lenalee! We were all worried about you in the Ark!"

Allen gave him a sideways glance; what happened to the angry Lavi? Had that even been real?

"I can't wait to see the look on that old panda's face when he finds out about this," Lavi continued, leaning back and placing his hands behind his head. "Maybe he'll stop calling me a novice and all that crap, since I'll know more than he does."

"Isn't there a rule against that kind of thing?" Lenalee asked him.

Lavi shrugged. "Does it apply to a Bookman?"

There was a knock on the door, and they turned to face it just as Tom entered, carrying a tray with three bowls of steaming-hot soup. Allen's stomach promptly growled, and Lenalee and Lavi both laughed at that.

"Hungry, I see," Tom said cheerfully, placing the bowls on a table near Lavi. "I'll bring up more when you finish that. Just call if you need anything."

"Thank you, Tom," Lenalee said politely.

"Enjoy it," he told them, leaving the room. Allen, as it turned out, was _very_ hungry – everyone was very grateful to the Ministry by the end of the night for paying for everything. When they finally entered their own rooms later that night, none of them had trouble falling into a deep, content sleep.

* * *

Allen awoke in the morning to Lenalee sitting on the edge of his bed, looking conflicted about whether or not to wake him up. She had been deep in thought, apparently, so was surprised to see his eyes flutter open.

"Good morning, Allen-kun," she said, beaming.

"…good morning, Lenalee." He sat up in bed and tried to smooth some of the wrinkles out of his shirt. "Is Lavi awake?"

"No, he's sleeping," she said slowly, the smile fading. "Why?"

"Oh – I just don't want to be the last one to wake up," he told her quickly. "Especially since he's known for sleeping."

"I just woke up early, that's all."

Her gaze fell to the bed, and Allen immediately felt a strange, nervous feeling rise in his stomach. _Did I say something wrong? _"Thanks for waking me up," he said cheerfully, smiling at her hopefully. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"Tom said he'd bring something up when Lavi wakes up." She stood up from the bed and crossed the room to the chair where the Bookman apprentice had sat the night before, and Allen felt oddly lonely without her presence. He pushed back the covers and turned to face her.

"That could be a while." Again, he smiled, hoping that she would return it, but she didn't face him. "Lenalee, is something wrong?"

"What?" She looked up, and her violet eyes met his confused silver ones. "No, there isn't – well, I suppose I'm still a little worried about not being able to contact nii-san and everyone else, but – I said I'd be stronger this time, so I will be." The smile she returned was far from confident, but it made that nervous feeling disappear.

"That's good," he said quietly. "That's the Lenalee that I know." Her smile grew warmer, and Allen felt heat rise in his cheeks. _That's the Lenalee that I-_

"Good morning, you two!" And there was Lavi, opening the door with a loud crash and entering the room to stand right between them. The heat promptly faded and Allen found himself glaring at the older boy; _does he have some kind of device that tells him when to interrupt us-_

"Good morning, Lavi!" Lenalee's cheerful morning demeanor was back, apparently. "Allen-kun was just asking about you earlier, actually."

"Was he?" Lavi turned to Allen and raised an eyebrow (well, the only visible eyebrow). "Missing my company? Or did you want to find out if you and Lenalee would be alon-"

Allen's boot suddenly found itself sliding across the floor and into Lavi's foot.

"Ow! Damn, what was – did you _kick_ that, Allen?" Lavi hopped on one foot while holding the wounded one and wincing. "That hurt!"

"It did that on its own," Allen said flatly.

"Why did you do that, you bastard?!"

"Why did you do that to yourself? That's just stupid."

"What?! What the hell is up with you, Allen?"

"What's up with you?" Allen merely stared blankly ahead of him.

"No really, what-"

"So energetic at this time in the morning, and on an empty stomach?"

Lenalee eagerly thanked Tom for arriving at the perfect moment, and bringing breakfast, too. The arrival of food quickly ended the argument, and soon the three settled down to eat (although Allen and Lavi seemed to be avoiding each other; was that intentional?) – Lenalee returning the chair to the older Exorcist, of course. They were just finishing when there was another knock on the door, and Tom entered again, followed by the familiar round face of David Potter.

"Me again," he said, apologizing. He was dressed in black again, although wearing a formal suit and tie that contrasted oddly with his earring. "The Ministry wanted Hagrid to come and show you around… didn't think you'd be attacked with him… completely forgot he's a teacher now. There's some bias towards his type, that's why."

"It's good to see you again," Lenalee said in a genuine tone. "At least you're a semi-familiar face in… these times."

"With knowledge of Muggle clothing, too," he added. "Come on, get up; there's a train leaving at four this afternoon, and it's already mid-morning."

Thanking Tom for his hospitality on their way out, the Exorcists were led through the bar area and into a small courtyard behind the pub. David produced a familiar long, thin stick from somewhere in his suit jacket, and began to examine the wall above the dustbin.

"Three above and two to… or is it two above and… can never get it right; haven't used this path in years… ah, this is it!" He tapped a brick with the stick and it suddenly moved and opened up slowly into a large archway, revealing a cobblestone path leading away from it. "This is the entrance to Diagon Alley," he explained. "Full of stores with magical items and the like."

"What was that thing you tapped the brick with?" Lavi asked. "Is it used to produce magic?"

"Yeah, a wand… you should be-" David snapped his fingers and cursed. "Ollivander disappeared a few months ago, didn't he! Poor old man. Ah well, I'm sure the Ministry or Hogwarts has a few spare wands. It isn't as if you can really use them anyway – even if you don't choose them, nothing will be affected."

"Why do we need wands if we can't do magic?" Lenalee inquired.

"Well, it'd look strange if you didn't have them, right?"

David led them through the archway and down the street, pausing to check the list in front of a shabby cart that proclaimed to sell protective amulets on its cardboard sign. "You'll need books," he said finally. "In here."

Fortunately, after asking their ages ("for the years", he explained. "Different classes."), he seemed to know exactly what was required, and the Exorcists amused themselves by looking at magical books until he shooed them out and down the street.

"If Bookman ever gives me enough money, I'm coming back to buy that history book," Lavi said, in awe. "Do you think the Vatican would see it as a necessary expense…"

"The Black Order doesn't seem to exist here," Lenalee reminded him. "And that's assuming that the book is back in our time, and we can access the store, since we're not magical."

"And wizard money is different from yours," David added. "I suppose you could always change it to pounds at the bank, though."

"I need to pay off Master's debts first," Allen muttered.

The streets were nearly empty, filled only by the occasional witch or wizard doing necessary shopping, or by the hawkers in their little stalls. Most of the movement came from the large posters containing moving images of various sinister-looking people; David seemed mostly unaffected, but Lenalee and Allen shrank away from them whenever they passed one. Even Lavi walked quickly away from them.

They passed other stores – David had to physically prevent Allen and Lavi from stopping by Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes – and made quick stops in other stores for general supplies that Lenalee said must be for scientific purposes.

"My brother was the head of the Science Department," she pointed out. "I know these things."

"So we're going to be studying _alchemy_?" Allen asked, awestruck.

"Potions doesn't require magical skill, generally," David informed them. "Useful supplies, too, in case anyone needs to borrow them. Here – cauldrons, scales, some Potions supplies… good thing there's a new teacher this year; the old one might not have let you in. He's teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts, though. You won't be taking that."

Allen's face had lit up at the mention of "defence", and promptly fell when David finished the sentence. "We'd have to be able to do magic for that?"

"Precisely… you might be able to get by, Allen, but sixth-year is about non-verbal spells."

"Everyone would know I'm not a witch," Lenalee said sadly.

David nodded absentmindedly and led them to their final stop, which seemed to be filled with those strange articles of clothing that so many Ministry workers had worn.

"Robes," he explained. "Most wizards and witches wear them. Standard article of clothing… you'll need them for school; you can't go around wearing what you are now."

"They're our uniforms," Allen told him.

"And these will be your school uniforms… and those shorts will get cold in winter," he added to Lenalee.

"I always thought her miniskirt would be cold," Allen muttered. Not that he'd ever said anything about it…

"You're not wearing robes," Lavi pointed out.

David glanced down at his suit. "Most younger witches and wizards wear Muggle clothing for casual occasions. It isn't as if you can walk through Muggle-inhabited areas in robes, after all."

"Then how do they get around?" Lenalee asked.

"Apparition. That might have been what you heard of, with that other witch – makes an awful cracking sound, but it's basically a kind of teleportation. You can take the test once you turn seventeen, so all the sixth-years will be attending practice sessions."

"Except me," the Chinese Exorcist added.

"Except you, yes. Well, don't worry; you can always say you're waiting for the summer test."

"But my birthday is in February!"

"I'm sure you'll think of something. Ah, Madam Malkin, how nice to see you again – no, I'm not in need of new robes, although I could use a pair of dress – yes, these three – newly attending Hogwarts-" David's attention was quickly redirected, and the Exorcists patiently and quietly waited for him to finish his business with the shop owner, and let them leave. This time, however, they were actually needed.

The squat woman smiled brightly at the trio and motioned for them to follow her to the back, where she set up three stools for them to stand on. Starting with Allen, she slipped a long, loose robe over each of their heads and began to slip pins into the material here and there, for a proper fit.

"This feels strange," Lavi complained. "Lenalee, you're used to wearing skirts, and Allen always has that long coat, so _you_ wouldn't know…"

"My dresses are tighter than this," Lenalee reminded the older boy. "And anyway, I haven't worn one in months. It looks strange with my hair."

The robes _did_ emphasize her short hair, Allen realized. Even pinned to proper lengths and widths, he'd never seen Lenalee wear such loose clothing (he felt a pang of regret at realizing she'd be wearing this for months, and immediately tried to shut the thought out; Lenalee was cute no matter what she wore! No, wait, that wasn't – he shouldn't be thinking about Lenalee's appearance like that. Right. Komui would not be happy.), and with her new hairstyle, she nearly looked like a different person altogether than the one he had met on that night so long ago.

…_She's just as cute, though._

They were soon finished, and David led them back to the Leaky Cauldron with their packages in order to prepare for the journey to the train station; the Ministry had provided luggage for them, if not transportation. Again, it was completely empty except for the bartender, although one old witch did stop by for a drink while they were packing.

The sun had begun its descent from the sky when they said their goodbyes to Tom and walked down the streets of London to the nearest Underground station, although it was still shining brightly when they arrived at King's Cross and found their train.

"Most students take the Express, but that left on the first of September," David explained, shoving three tickets into Lenalee's hand. "It might be fairly late when you arrive, then – don't forget, it's Hogsmeade station. Someone from Hogwarts will _certainly_ be waiting for you there. Oh, before I forget…" He produced a small bag from his suit jacket. "The Ministry has provided a monetary allowance for you three. The school allows older students to visit Hogsmeade village on certain days, and the Ministry sees no reason not to allow you three to go."

"Thank you so much for helping us," Lenalee told him. "You've been so kind."

"And it was good to see you again," Allen added.

"We'll do all we can to return you three home as soon as we can," David promised. "You should board the train, though. It's nearly four."

They did so, found a compartment, and waved goodbye until the train started moving. Almost immediately, Lavi slumped back into his seat tiredly.

"Wake me up when we get there," he told the other two. "It's been a long day."

He tilted his head back and fell asleep. Allen, who had been sitting next to him, gave his friend just a single glance before slipping out of his seat and moving to sit next to Lenalee.

"I don't think he's interested in conversation," the white-haired boy muttered, grinning.

Lenalee smiled back and reached for her bag. "I won't be, either," she said apologetically. "We're already a month behind in school, not to mention _years_. I'd really like to catch up with some studying."

"It's probably not a bad idea," Allen said weakly. Beaming, Lenalee handed him his own bag of books, and produced a Potions book from hers. "You know, we don't really have to try… it isn't as if this is affecting our future," he reminded her.

"I know." She shrugged, and opened her book to the very first page. "I just want to work hard, that's all."

Well, if she was impressed by that sort of thing… Allen also began to read his own book, although at a much slower pace than his companion, and with more interjections about wishing he had a photographic memory like Lavi.

The sun had long set and Allen had also fallen asleep by the time Lenalee shook him awake.

"We're nearly there," she whispered.

"Why are you whispering?" he murmured, still half-asleep. "Aren't you waking Lavi, too?"

An embarrassed flush spread across Lenalee's cheeks. "I will," she muttered, standing up and moving across the compartment to shake Lavi awake. Allen noticed that she had already packed their books, and placed their luggage neatly by the door; had she not slept?

The two boys were still half asleep by the time they stumbled off the train, despite Lenalee's half-hearted attempts to make conversation; she clearly was as tired as they were. Evidently, she had spent the night studying her books, and had apparently made some progress; her one-sided conversations were mostly about something she had read and wanted Allen to know for his own sake.

It was only when the train departed that the three came to the sudden realization that they had no idea who they were supposed to be meeting here. Fortunately, they were the only three teenagers (among very few people) on the platform, and they were soon approached by a… very large and hairy man.

"You three! Yeh'll be the new Hogwarts students, then?" He was holding a lantern despite the fact that the station was lit, and was wearing a heavy overcoat. They nodded. "Follow me. Name's Hagrid. Care of Magical Creatures professor."

"We really appreciate that you came out here at this time of night," Lenalee told him as they exited the station. "You must have classes tomorrow, too."

"Used ter be gamekeeper," Hagrid explained. "I lead the firs' years to Hogwarts every year, too, across the lake."

"Lake," Lenalee repeated, shivering. "We won't have to cross it, will we?"

"Nah, yeh three will be takin' Thestrals. Probably won' see 'em, though."

It was a brief walk to the edge of the village, which was also covered in those large moving-picture posters and the purple notices. In the darkness of the night, they suddenly seemed more menacing, as the white contrasted even more with the black aspects. Even though the streetlamps were lit, the streets were mostly deserted at this time of night. Nevertheless, when they finally left the village and found themselves without even the comfort of light and nearby life, they found themselves longing for even those comforts.

"There's a carriage waitin' for yeh three over there," Hagrid told them, pointing behind a cluster of houses. "I'll follow yeh three there, but yeh'll have to get to Hogwarts on yer own. Carriage won' fit me."

"You can return safely, right, Hagrid?" Allen asked nervously.

"Sure! It ain' far from here, Hogwarts. Thestrals know the way." By now, they could see the carriage, and the faint outlines of vaguely horselike figures in front of it. "Yeh shouldn' be able ter see 'em, though, but they're there."

"Are they… horses?" Lenalee asked him.

"Sort of… yeh don' want ter see them, though. Those that can have seen death, and that's not somethin' mos' have done."

Allen and Lenalee exchanged worried glances; no matter how they interpreted it…

"Then how does anyone know what they look like?" Lavi asked. "Most people don't come back from that." Was it just Allen's imagination, or was the older boy giving his companions a pointed look?

"Oh, not that kind! They can be seen by someone who has seen someone _else_ die," Hagrid explained to the three teenagers. "There aren' many at Hogwarts who have, but…"

"Look," Lenalee whispered to Allen, pulling on his sleeve. "They've got wings. Are we flying there?"

"Don' worry about that." After hearing Lenalee's sentence, Hagrid looked visibly shaken; were none of the three at all concerned or traumatized by seeing death? "Jus' get yerselves to the castle as soon as possible. Yeh've already missed a month of classes."

They climbed into the carriage and Hagrid closed the door behind Allen, waving to them, and disappearing; by his voice, he was talking to the Thestrals. Moments later, the carriage had begun to move and Hagrid and the lights of Hogsmeade had disappeared behind them. Almost immediately, Lenalee spoke to them.

"Now that I think about it, we _have_ seen plenty of death, as Exorcists," she murmured into the darkness. "Most people our age haven't experienced that."

"It's our duty," Lavi reminded her. "Killing akuma, right?"

"Akuma are already dead." She closed her eyes tightly for a brief moment, then opened them again, but would not look at her companions. "We've all seen the deaths of innocent humans, or even humans that weren't so innocent, at some point."

"You mean Road?" Lavi asked her. "That's the only one I can think of that I've seen."

"An entire police force was killed by an akuma," Allen whispered. "It was before I came to the Order, when I was trying to find it, but it didn't affect me at all. And Suman, I guess… and there was a Finder on my first mission… old man, too, but he was old…"

"I've seen Exorcists and Finders die in battle, too," Lenalee replied. "From years ago. And my parents…"

Allen looked at her sadly, although he knew she couldn't see him in the darkness. "At least I didn't see Mana die, that time. I just heard about it later."

"You two are really unlucky," Lavi muttered.

There was a long silence where Lenalee attempted to pull out a book and read by moonlight – unsuccessfully – until she gasped quietly and slammed the book shut. Lavi, who had been sleeping, nearly hit the ceiling of the carriage at that.

"You almost gave me a heart attack, Lenalee!" he said angrily, taking deep breaths. "What's wrong?"

"The castle," she said slowly, fingers gripping the books tightly. "It's protected by anti-Muggle wards. One of the books that David bought us said so – it's about Hogwarts itself; it isn't required material, but he said that it's sometimes hard to get from the library."

"So what? We already know about magic, right?" Lavi shrugged and settled back as if he were about to return to peaceful sleep. "So we should be able to get in."

"We're not even supposed to be able to get near it, Lavi! It's going to look like some crumbling ruin of a castle even if we _could_ find a way past the wards!" Lenalee had flung herself towards the door, in a panic. "We have to tell someone!"

"There's no one here," Allen reminded her calmly. "I'm sure the Ministry is aware of the wards, Lenalee. They wouldn't have sent us if there wasn't a way around them, right?"

"And Hagrid didn't seem concerned, either," Lavi added.

"I suppose." Lenalee didn't sound convinced, but she had slid back into her seat and was merely watching the door while biting her lip nervously. "And there are people in there, so I'm sure someone will find us eventually."

"That's right! Be positive, right, Lenalee!" Lavi grinned at her again. "Do I have time for a nap now?"

"I think we're slowing down," Allen observed. "We might be there."

Lenalee immediately began to pack up her books again, and only just managed to close her bag by the time the wheels of the carriage stopped rolling and the Thestrals halted. Lavi swung the door open and they stepped out onto the grass in front of the school. As soon as he closed the door, the Thestrals ran off again, pulling the carriage behind them. The three turned around to have a look at the place where they would be spending an unknown period of their lives, and gasped.

"Wow," Lavi said.

* * *

That fight between Allen and Lavi (with the boot) was actually taken right from the manga, except Allen elbowed Lavi in the stomach instead – it's from chapter 123.

Next chapter, everyone gets settled in. More discussion. Maybe a class or two.


	4. Scroll 4

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: Clearly, writing is not my strong point. Ahaha. What's the point in putting this in anyway, you all know that I mean to say that I don't own either series.

If this chapter sucks, well, I wrote two-thirds of it in a few hours. That's why.

Revised on September 29, 2007.

* * *

Scroll Four: Even More Explanations, Original Characters, and Boring Details

"Wow," Lavi said.

There _was_ a castle there, and while the dark obscured the general shape and appearance, the tiny lights spattered around the silhouette revealed its size, and the various turrets and towers. At this distance, it was difficult to take it all in at once.

"It's gigantic," he said.

"Ah, there yeh are!" Hagrid's large shape, lit by the lantern, appeared behind them. "Doors are unlocked tonight for yeh three." He walked past them and pushed the door open, revealing a room of blackness. Even with the light, Allen couldn't make out the ceiling, or even another wall; it must be a very large room!

Another light appeared across from them, revealing a large marble staircase; as the light came closer, it was revealed to be a stern, dark-haired woman dressed in black robes. As she approached, she nodded to Hagrid, and he stepped back outside.

"I will take them from here," she told him.

"Thanks, Professor." He turned away from the school and closed the door.

"Where is he going… ah, Professor?" Lenalee inquired. "Doesn't he live in the school, too?"

"Hagrid's home is on the grounds," the Professor explained. "He acted as groundskeeper for many years. Now, the issue of your admission." In the darkness, the bit of light reflected strangely on her spectacles. "We have received a letter from the Ministry, and are aware of your… circumstances. Normally, I would be discussing such issues with you in the Headmaster's absence, but fortunately, he is in the school and awake at this time."

"The Headmaster isn't usually around?"

"Sounds like Cross," Allen muttered.

"He was recently absent." The professor turned towards the stairs and immediately began to walk, motioning for them to follow. "Most students are unaware of this, although he seemed to agree with the Ministry's idea that you three can be trusted. There could be worse plots than sending three children…"

"Things must really be bad," Lavi whispered to the other two. "If we hadn't had such a story, we might not have…"

"Received such a hospitable reception," Allen finished, hopefully on a more neutral note.

The rest of the journey was silent as they were taken through a number of halls, up numerous staircases, and finally arrived at a statue of a gargoyle. The woman bent down to whisper something to the statue, and it sprung aside, revealing a moving spiral stone staircase (Lavi was amused). At the top, the professor knocked on the door, and a deep voice spoke.

"Come in."

She opened the door, and led the three inside. It was a sight that reminded the trio slightly of Komui's office; numerous silvery objects that refused to remain still and silent; portraits of previous Headmasters snored on the walls, and, in one corner, slept what looked exactly like the stereotypical image of a phoenix. Yet it was the man who sat behind the desk that captured their attention. He carried the same aura of power and charisma that the Chief Monitor did on his serious days, yet with flowing silver hair and matching beard and moustache that Lenalee's brother would not have for years, if ever. Half-moon glasses perched on his crooked nose, and there was a strange gleam in his bright blue eyes as he examined them.

"Sit down," he told them, gesturing with his wand towards three chairs set up in front of his desk. "So you three are the Muggles that have had the misfortune to come into contact with one of the… well, someone who holds less appreciation for others than she should?"

"Yes, sir," they said together, moving towards the chairs.

"In that case, I am pleased to welcome you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." He smiled pleasantly at them. "I am the Headmaster of this school, Albus Dumbledore, and the professor who brought you here is Professor McGonagall, who teaches Transfiguration… a course, I believe, you will not be taking."

Lenalee and Allen nodded; Lavi remained silent.

"I have been informed that two of you will become students for this year?" he asked them, peering over the tops of his spectacles. "And the third…"

"That's me," Lavi told him.

"I do not believe it would be particularly unusual for you to assist a teacher," Dumbledore finished. "Being unable to perform magic will certainly narrow your options, in that respect."

"There is a history class, isn't there?" the red-haired Exorcist said slowly. "I have an… interest… in that."

"An excellent choice, although our history may be different from the one you know."

"I'll enjoy learning about it, then," Lavi said eagerly.

"Which leaves the issue of the two of you – fifth and sixth years, then?" Again, Allen and Lenalee nodded. "Fortunately, we have a number of classes that you two may take, even in your respective years… Potions, certainly, and History of Magic, and Astronomy and Herbology… Divination… Care of Magical Creatures… certainly enough to fill a normal schedule." He nodded to himself, as if finishing that thought. "Which brings me to the issue of your houses."

"Houses?" Allen asked. "We'll be separated?"

"Perhaps, and perhaps not. A teacher's assistant will have his own room, but you two will be living with the other students in one of our four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin." Dumbledore stood and made his way to a pedestal in a corner of the room, where a worn-out pointed hat lay. Picking it up, he walked back towards the desk and placed it in front of him. "As it will not be singing a song this time – a pity; I do enjoy them – I believe I must explain to you about the Houses."

"It _sings_?" Lavi said in disbelief.

"Certainly. It is a wizard's hat, after all. Now, you are sorted into your respective houses based on personality. Generally, Gryffindors are known for their courage and brave hearts; Ravenclaw for intelligence and desire to learn; Hufflepuff for hard work and loyalty; and Slytherin for ambition and cunning." He handed Allen the hat, who simply stared at it. "Just place it on your head, boy."

Feeling quite awkward, Allen did so hesitantly. Almost immediately, he heard a small voice speaking directly into his ear.

"You're an interesting one," it said, amused. "Such a desire to work and help others; you would make a good Hufflepuff. Yet there's a dark side to you… not willing to lose… that's a trait greatly admired by Slytherin."

_It doesn't really matter,_ Allen thought to himself. _As long as I'm with Lenalee, and I can protect everyone, it's all right. Dumbledore didn't say anything about inequality, right?_

"You've done some amazing things."

_It can read my memories?!_

"Your memories define who you are," it reminded him. "With such a desire, and a strong will to realize your goals, your courage can't be overlooked. Even with your other traits, I think you'll be most successful in Gryffindor."

_What? _Allen felt the hat being removed from his head and he sat there blankly until Dumbledore spoke.

"Usually it shouts the name," he explained. "It finally decided."

"It did?" That last word must have been spoken aloud, Allen realized. Did that mean he would be in that house?

"You really are a brave person, Allen-kun," Lenalee told him. "I'm not really surprised."

"It took forever to decide!" he complained, blushing slightly at her compliment. "It wanted me to be in Hufflepuff and then Slytherin, and then talked about my memories.

"Well, you're certainly hard-working and loyal, but…" Lenalee frowned. "I don't see you as ambitious or cunning."

"You've never seen him play poker," Lavi muttered to her.

"I believe you are the next to be sorted, young lady," Dumbledore addressed Lenalee, handing her the hat. She also looked nervous as she slipped it over her head, and minutes passed in silence before the hat spoke out her answer: Gryffindor, the same as Allen's house (he breathed a sigh of relief). Dumbledore removed the hat and she gave the younger boy a hesitant smile.

"It almost didn't want me there, either, she murmured to him. "I'm happy we're not all separated, though."

"I'm not in your house," Lavi reminded them sullenly.

"We'll see you in classes, right? And we'll all see each other during meals," Lenalee reassured him. "It's better than nothing at all."

_She really is becoming stronger,_ Allen thought. _Even to be separated from both of us all day… no wonder the hat thought she was courageous._

"Wonder what House I'd be in," Lavi mused, cheered by the thought of seeing his friends at least three times every day. "Since I haven't sacrificed my safety for someone who hated me, or jumped off a boat to fight and risked my life…"

"You're brave too, Lavi! When Allen-kun was… in China, you were much stronger than I was," Lenalee reminded him. "Even though he was your friend too."

Lavi muttered something under his breath that made Lenalee turn pink and glare at him; Allen vaguely wondered what he said. At that moment, the Headmaster cleared his throat, and the three spun around to look at him.

"Then it's settled. Professor McGonagall will escort the two Gryffindor students to their dorm, where beds will be set up by the time you arrive… she is your Head of House, after all. You will stay near the professors," he added to Lavi. "If you ever require assistance or have a question, you may ask her, or myself, if I am available."

"Thank you, Headmaster," the trio murmured in unison. They stood up from their chairs and walked back to the door, where the female professor was waiting. As she closed the door behind them, Dumbledore smiled in their direction and glanced down at a paper on his desk, freshly painted with ink.

"Allen Walker, Lenalee Lee, and Lavi," he murmured. "This will be an interesting year for you three."

The halls were empty for the most part as the Exorcists were taken through another system of hallways and stairs, and the journey was in silence. It was therefore a great surprise when there was sudden movement up ahead, yet no footsteps could be heard. When the light struck the area, a pale, transparent figure was revealed.

"Am I asleep?" Lavi murmured, rubbing his eye rapidly. "It's _floating_..."

"It looks like Nick," Professor McGonagall told them. "Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington is the official ghost of Gryffindor House. He's very friendly."

"A GHOST?!" Allen's face had gone as white as the ghost, except with a tinge of green.

"Oh hello, Professor. Are these new students?" The ghost floated forward, revealing a smiling face surrounded by a thick ruff that had certainly gone out of style centuries before the Exorcists had been born. "Gryffindors, I hope." After the professor's agreeing nod, he surveyed the three, frowning when he noticed Allen's terrified look. "Is there something wrong?"

"Allen doesn't like ghosts," Lavi explained, seemingly finding no issue with the fact that a ghost had spoken to him. "He looked this way when I told him there were ghosts back at the Order headquarters, too…"

"He didn't know?" Lenalee's eyes widened in surprise. "But he lived there for three months…"

"Ghosts," Allen muttered, staring straight ahead blankly. "Ghosts…"

"Well," Sir Nicholas huffed indignantly, "I hope I may be less… _offending_ in the future. It isn't my neck, is it? Forty-nine times and still-"

"These students are… not used to such things," Professor McGonagall said quickly, giving Allen a pointed look that definitely told him _calm down NOW; this is unacceptable behaviour_. "They're… ah, Muggle-born, I believe."

The ghost relaxed slightly, although keeping the offended appearance and tone. "Well, I suppose they're not expected to know these things… better me than the Bloody Baron, I suppose."

Any colour that had returned to Allen's face promptly disappeared again.

"I'm sure our new students and teaching assistant will encounter them eventually," the professor said quickly.

Lavi gave a wide yawn and stretched his arms above his head. Nick promptly gave a start, then turned his back to them. "They could use some sleep," he said promptly before sweeping off down the hall. Without any reaction, the professor continued down the hall where the ghost had passed, and finally brought them to a portrait of a rather fat lady hanging on a tower wall.

"This is the entrance to Gryffindor Tower," she explained. "You need a password to enter each time. Just speak it to the lady in the portrait, and she will open the way for Gryffindor students."

"Could anyone get in, though?" Lavi asked. "If they knew the password?"

"Technically, yes, but…" McGonagall gave him a stern look over the top of her glasses. "You shouldn't be doing such a thing."

There was a yawn from the picture, and the image of the lady spoke. "Students at this time of night?" she groaned. "Why are you out here?"

"Students are not to be in the corridors at night," the professor reminded them, ignoring the lady for a brief moment before turning back to her with the password. "Sorry to disturb you."

"Oh, it's nothing at all," the lady exclaimed, swinging open to reveal the common room inside. "Always happy to see new students, as long as they're kind and cheerful."

The three were ushered into the common room, where a warm fire was burning. The older woman pointed to two sets of stairs that evidently led to different dormitories. "Your beds should have been set up by now. The boys' dormitory is up those stairs, and the girls, up those… there shouldn't be any gender mixing in the rooms," she added, particularly to the two boys. "You'll have classes tomorrow, so it would be best to sleep immediately. The professors may know of your… conditions, but they will still be expecting homework. Gryffindor House _does_ have a reputation to uphold."

Allen and Lenalee thanked her politely before the youngest Exorcist asked, "Where will Lavi be staying?"

"I'll take him to his own room… you won't be able to visit him there, though. He might be given an office, being an assistant professor… well, there are lots of places you three can meet when you have time." She turned towards the exit, gesturing for Lavi to follow. "And… it's good to see new students in Gryffindor."

"Don't do anything fun without me," Lavi told them, grinning weakly. "And Allen, don't do anything I _would_."

Allen glared at his friend, and then the two exited the common room and he was left alone with Lenalee.

"She seems like an interesting professor," Lenalee commented absently. "I wonder what kinds of things you learn in Transfiguration…"

"Magic?" Allen suggested. Lenalee sighed and rolled her eyes at him.

"_Obviously_, Allen-kun. That's why we can't take it. I meant – what kinds of magic? Turning one thing into another? Can that really be done? There must be limits to magic, but-"

Lenalee continued to chatter excitedly about magic, and Allen began to wonder if she wasn't using the fantasy of magic to replace her worry about separation from her family and friends. He'd never seen her act this excited about anything, and it was a little worrisome. Something must be wrong…

"Lenalee," he interrupted, placing his hands on her shoulders. She gave a start, and closed her mouth. "It's okay, you know? You don't have to worry about that kind of thing. You said you'd be strong, right?"

Allen felt her relax, her shoulders slumping under his hands. "You're right," she whispered. "It would be so nice to learn magic, wouldn't it? But even if I could ever use it, it's impossible to think that I could find that spell again…"

So that was it. She wanted to discover that spell so everyone could go home…

"We'll all go home together," he promised her.

"…Thank you, Allen-kun."

Her arms wrapped around his neck and she pulled herself closer to him, her cheek against his shoulder, and his hands slipped down her back. He could feel her smile, and was quietly thankful that she couldn't see his own. They stayed like that for what felt like an eternity to him until she finally pulled away with a sigh.

"We should get some sleep, like the professor said."

"Yeah," Allen muttered, already missing her warmth. Why hadn't he been as embarrassed, that time? It hadn't really been a shock, she'd been close to him already and he knew her well enough by now, but even so…

"Good night, Allen-kun."

Oh! She was talking again! "Good night, Lenalee."

Allen made his way up the stairs into his dormitory, found the empty bed, and didn't even bother to change out of his clothes. Instead, he just slid under the blanket and was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, without even a single thought.

* * *

"Hey, is that one of the new students?"

"What?"

"Remember? Dumbledore told us about them yesterday. Said he didn't know what houses they were in or anything, but they were transfer students."

"Yeah, three of them. So one's in Gryffindor?"

"Fifth-year, too…"

Allen squeezed his eyes closed as tightly as possible and rolled over onto his stomach, shoving the pillow in his face and blocking out any light in the room. He didn't want to wake up now, it was too early, couldn't he have a few more minutes, the mission could wait-

Mission. No, this wasn't a mission. This was that magic school that he'd been sent to until some people found a way to get him and Lenalee and Lavi back home. Right. Not a mission.

…So he couldn't sleep anymore?

There was pressure on the end of the bed; at least one other person had climbed onto it. Someone was now very busy poking him in the shoulder, and another someone was tugging on his pillow. Allen made a sound of refusal and held onto it tightly.

"Come on, if you don't wake up, you'll be late to classes."

"And miss breakfast," some other voice added.

"What?" The pillow was immediately forgotten. "Breakfast?"

"Oh hey, he's awake!" This was the first voice he had heard, coming from a brown-haired boy (unevenly cut, Allen noted) with shining dark eyes. "Looks like food is more important than class."

"Well, it _is_," the second voice said. This belonged to a slightly chubby black-haired boy, whose blue eyes were peering at Allen curiously even as he talked about breakfast. "It's the most important meal of the day."

"Except when it's Transfiguration next," a third boy joked – he was lying on the bed closest to Allen's, blonde-highlighted hair spread across his pillow as he grinned mischievously. "Or Potions."

"Unless you like detention." The first boy sat back on Allen's bed and held out his hand. "My name's Sean, and these are Albert," he nodded to the dark-haired boy, "and Will." The blonde boy waved. "So now our dorm has five members, too."

"I'm Allen," the Exorcist told them, shaking Sean's hand nervously. "Um… it's nice to meet you."

"He speaks," Albert said in a deadpan tone.

"I was _sleeping_…"

"Got white hair, too – hey, that's another different colour!" Will sat up and swung his legs over the side of his bed to face Allen. "They'll know our dorm that way. Hey, is that natural? I mean, was it born that way – you weren't hit by a curse or anything, were you?"

Curse… that sounded right. Allen shrugged. "No, it was brown originally, but it's grown this way for the last three years."

"Any magic involved?"

"…No, I don't think so." After all, he hadn't known magic had existed until two days ago, and wouldn't Mana have said something if he could use it – assuming an akuma could at all? "Wait – you said something about five members?"

Sean nodded, and pointed to a lump in a bed across the room. "Chester likes his sleep better than food – he's got red hair, by the way."

"Oh." The boys grinned back at him; Allen's face wore an expression of complete horror at the thought of anything being more important than food. "So… about breakfast?"

"Sure, just get dressed and – oh, you already are. It's in the Great Hall every morning." Sean stood up, followed by Will and Albert. "Don't worry about making your bed or anything; the house-elves will do that."

"There are house-elves here?" Will asked incredulously.

"Didn't you know?" Sean gave the blonde boy a dumbfounded look. "That sixth-year selling badges to protest them for the last few years didn't give you an idea?"

"Well, no…"

Noting the schoolbags of the others, Allen quickly grabbed his supplies and stuffed them into his own. He had just met them at the door when Albert turned around suddenly and stared down – all three boys were taller than him – at his face.

"Hey, look," he said to the others, "he's got a scar, too."

The others gasped and stared at his face simultaneously, and Allen felt incredibly awkward. Had they not noticed before? It wasn't as if it was a small scar or anything, or that he'd hidden his face, or… well, it was a long time before Sean suddenly breathed,

"It's just like Harry Potter! We'll be a famous dorm, too!"

"First the hair colours and now this," Will said happily.

"Um, excuse me," Allen interrupted nervously, "but who's Harry Potter?"

Sean's jaw dropped. Albert's eyes widened to a nearly impossible size. Will just shrugged. "Sixth year," he explained. "Small and skinny, sort of like you… wears glasses… he's in Gryffindor; you'll probably see him around in the common room or something."

Albert grabbed Will's sleeve and pulled the lighter-haired boy around to face him. "H-how can he not know!" the blue-eyed boy exclaimed. "Everyone knows who Harry Potter is!"

"The Boy Who Lived," Sean muttered, running a hand through his messy hair.

"Well, he's probably Muggle-born, isn't he?" Will shrugged off his friend's arm and started walking down the stairs. "I heard from Ginny that even _he_ didn't know who he was at first."

"Ginny? Ginny _Weasley_?" Sean darted after Will. "Since when does she talk to _you_?"

"How many fifth-year Gryffindors are there? She's a nice girl; we've got classes together."

"We _all_ have classes together," Albert reminded them.

"Right… so we talked a little, dated for a week or two-"

"No way!"

"Yeah, last year. Her brother's friends with Harry, so…"

Allen shrugged and followed the trio, wondering if he'd ever find a way to make friends with them – they seemed nicer than Kanda, at any rate – and hoping that he'd see Lenalee soon. When the common room turned out to be nearly empty, with no sign of his short-haired friend, he nearly forgot about his classmates in his rush to get to breakfast.

Unfortunately, he didn't know the way to the Great Hall, and was therefore unable to run ahead. When they finally arrived, Lenalee was already sitting at the table with a pair of older girls (from her year, she supposed). Upon seeing Allen, she waved to him.

"Allen-kun!" she called. "Where have you been?" He slid into the seat next to her, and the three boys took seats on his other side, chatting animatedly to each other. "You weren't in the common room when…"

"Sleeping," he said apologetically. "Why did you wake up so early?! You didn't sleep at all on the train or in the carriage, right?"

Lenalee shrugged. "I wanted to catch up on some of the material. Don't you remember? We _will _have homework this first week…"

"Oh, right…" Allen scowled at the table. "Exorcists aren't supposed to do that sort of paperwork. You're just used to it because you're Komui-san's assistant."

"He needs my help. Hey, Allen-kun, aren't you going to eat anything?"

"Yeah – hey, where's Lavi?"

"He's probably sleeping…"

"Lavi would rather sleep than _eat_?"

"He's not a parasitic type who needs energy," Lenalee reminded him, reaching for a slice of toast. "Anyway, there are some people like that."

Allen nodded, remembering the fifth member of his dormitory. "I think I'll meet another one today. And he's supposed to have red hair, too…"

"Maybe it's something in the genetics." Lenalee giggled. "So do white-haired people prefer food?"

"I don't know, but old people wake up early, don't they? So maybe that's true."

"Red-haired people get old, and their hair changes, so their habits do, too!"

"I never thought of that!"

They continued their conversation as they ate, both relieved to have the familiarity of their friendship in a time of such changes – well, and breakfast. Partway through the meal, Lavi arrived at their table to greet them and hand both Exorcists a timetable.

"You've got History of Magic at different times," he whined. "Allen, I won't see you until tomorrow…"

"But I'll see you this afternoon, right, Lavi?" Lenalee reminded him cheerfully. "And we'll all meet at lunch first, so we can go to class together on Mondays."

"Yeah, that's true…" Lavi's face brightened at the thought. "Oh, and I got a wand!" He reached into his own bag and pulled out a long thin stick that to the inexperienced eyes of the Exorcists looked just like any other wand. "It doesn't do anything for me, though. You two are supposed to see McGonagall in her office before your first class to get yours."

A wide smile spread across Lenalee's face, and Allen wondered if she was remembering their conversation the night before (the actual dialogue, not the hug – although he definitely didn't want to forget that). "I'll have to ask directions from the others, then," she said cheerfully. "We don't know where that is – Allen-kun, what's your first class?"

Allen glanced down at his timetable. "Um… Potions. Whatever that is."

"You should ask one of your classmates where that is, then. It's a required class, I think, so you'll be taking that class with them." Lenalee smiled proudly, happy with her increased knowledge of the school. Her display of intelligence surprised Allen; he'd known she was much smarter than both he and Lavi, especially being related to Komui, but he'd never really thought about it until now. Come to think of it, she'd always made observations that no one had thought of until she mentioned it. Why had he never considered it before? Lenalee really was amazing like that…

"Oh hey, you have a timetable?" Sean leaned over while chewing on a piece of bread thick with butter. "Potions, too? Good thing you came in this year; Slughorn's way better than Snape… ah, but you'll have Snape anyway, with Defence- hey, you don't have that!"

"It's a modified schedule," Allen explained quickly. Behind him, Lenalee nodded quickly. "I don't have Transfiguration or…"

"Charms," she whispered.

"…Charms, either," he finished.

"Wow, you're lucky – no Snape. McGonagall's a good teacher, but she's pretty hard too…" Sean sighed and returned to his original position. "If we've got time, we can take you two."

"Anything for a pretty young lady." Will winked at Lenalee, and her cheeks turned pink for a brief moment; Allen scowled at the taller boy. "Hey, she isn't there anymore – probably gone back to her office. You two are done, right?"

"See you at lunch," Lavi murmured to the pair, clapping a hand on Allen's shoulder before strolling back to the teacher's table.

"Yeah," Allen nodded as soon as the red-haired boy had left. "Are you, Lenalee?"

"I was finished before you were," she teased, reaching for her books. "I'll see you at lunch, right?" she added to the two girls sitting across the table from her. "I wish I could take Divination with you… it sounds really interesting."

"It is!" a dark-haired, tanned girl said eagerly. "This year, we've got Professor Trelawney…"

"She's really amazing," the other added. "Isn't she, Parvati?"

"She really is gifted! Lenalee, you're missing so much! You should come with Lavender and I to talk to her at lunch sometimes."

"It would be nice to have Firenze, though," Lavender added with a sigh. "He's so handsome.."

"We'll see," Lenalee said quickly, turning back to Allen and the three boys, who had also finished and were now standing in a group away from the table. "I have Ancient Runes first… that isn't too far, is it?"

"Not at all," Albert told her. "I have that class, too… well, in fifth year."

"So you're a new student too?" Sean asked as they walked to the professor's office. "That's why I haven't seen you around… and why you know Allen, here. I can't believe it – two in Gryffindor! Take _that_, Slytherin!" He made a mock punching motion in the air, and Lenalee smiled weakly at him.

"Yes, and the third is an assistant to the History of Magic teacher."

"Is Slytherin bad?" Allen asked the other boys. "I mean, since I'm new, and…"

"Well, not _bad_, exactly," Sean explained, shrugging. "They're like Gryffindor's rivals, I suppose. A lot of Dark wizards have come from there, and a lot of them are gits, but they're not all bad."

"I had an aunt in Slytherin," Albert added. "She's mad. Hey, what does Professor McGonagall want you two for?"

They couldn't exactly say they needed wands for the sake of appearances, could they? Allen gave Lenalee a pleading look, unable to think of a lie fast enough. "New student things," she said quickly, looking at Allen apologetically when he made a gesture that said _that was the best you could think of? _"We don't know much about Hogwarts, or magic, or anything… so she just needs to tell us something else, I suppose."

"Make sense." The trio seemed satisfied, and they soon arrived at the office. Allen knocked on the door, and when a voice told them to enter, the Exorcists glanced back at the three boys behind them.

"We'll wait here," Will said cheerfully. "You won't be long, right?"

"Probably." Lenalee gave them a reassuring smile. "It shouldn't take long at all – thank you for waiting, though."

"Really, it's no problem at all."

Inside, McGonagall glanced up as soon as they closed the door behind them. "Good, so Lavi sent you the message," she said, breathing a relieved sigh. "Fortunately, we have spare wands at Hogwarts for you two to use. I hope no one has noticed that you don't have them?" The pair shook their heads. "Excellent." She nodded to a pair of wands in front of her, lying still on her desk. "You may take whichever you want. This left one is nine inches, pine, and the right one is eleven inches and cherry… both contain phoenix feathers, oddly enough."

Lenalee reached for the smaller one. "It doesn't matter, right?"

"It shouldn't. Technically, any wand can be used by a magical person, but in your case…"

Allen picked up the remaining wand. "And we have to carry these around everywhere?"

"Well, yes…"

Lenalee suddenly jumped and dropped hers; Allen turned to her quickly, and even the professor looked concerned. "Sorry," she murmured, bending down to pick it up. "It sparked in my hand, and it surprised me, that's all." She held up the offended hand, and Allen could clearly see dark red marks from the heat.

"Are you all right?" he asked her, concerned. She nodded, and turned to McGonagall for reassurance, but even the professor looked unsettled.

"That shouldn't happen," she said slowly. "It shouldn't have done anything at all, and even in magical hands, to injure-"

"Then it isn't safe?" Allen turned back to Lenalee, but she was silent, clutching the wand tightly. She really wanted to keep it, even after…?

"I'll be fine," she assured her friend. "It's okay now, see? And my hand doesn't really hurt anymore."

The professor did not look satisfied, but nodded anyway. "You should get to your classes now."

"Thank you, Professor McGonagall," they chimed in unison, departing the office.

"Hey…" Albert frowned at the wands in their hands. "You didn't have those earlier. What did you need them for?"

"Checking," Lenalee explained. "To make sure they're all right." At Allen's puzzled glance, she added in a whisper, "They do that kind of thing before competitions and such. It's normal."

Evidently, the boys were satisfied. Will – oblivious to Allen's death-glare at his back – managed to give Lenalee directions to her first class with a great amount of excess touching and lack of space, and she waved to Allen as she departed the way they had originally come. Assuming a normal expression once the blonde boy turned around, Allen followed the other three through the halls and to his first magical class ever.

* * *

Next chapter will be mostly from Lenalee's perspective – or partially, anyway.

Allen _is_ scared of ghosts; Lavi mentioned them in a Talk Room in volume 7 and Allen didn't react to that really well, so I really wanted to mention that. Just find a translation of that if you don't believe me:P

By the way, everyone likes reviews. Thanks for reading it, but for 100+ views of chapter 3 and one review… well, I'm not begging for them, but I do like constructive criticism. Tell me what to improve on, please. PLEASE.


	5. Scroll 5

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: Oh wait, I have OCs now. Damn. You can use them, though; I don't care.

* * *

Scroll 5: The Chapter About Red-Haired People 

As Allen nearly ran to keep up with the three boys from his year, he found himself incredibly grateful for not needing to memorize the way to the dungeons. Being someone who got lost easily, he was very fortunate, having companions who knew their way and would be in the same class every morning. On the other hand, Lenalee had to get to her first class alone…

_That's right, you're going to be separated from Lenalee and Lavi for the entire morning, every weekday, for a long time. At least in China-_

_What about China?! You didn't have _anyone _there, you couldn't even talk to your friends, and you were missing your arm. You'll see Lenalee in a few hours. _

…_And Lavi too._

…_Right. Lenalee and him._

"Hey, we're here," Sean told the white-haired boy, tapping him on the shoulder and pointing to the door in front of him. "We're a little bit early, too."

"Good, we can pick where we sit this time." Albert sighed, relieved.

"Um…" Allen looked hesitantly at the door, then at the trio surrounding him. "So this is Potions, right?" He smiled nervously. "What exactly…"

"You'll see." Will grinned back and pushed the door open with his foot. "Honestly, just be happy you came this year and not last – Slughorn's halfway decent."

"And…" 

"Well, I can't say what Snape was in front of a teacher, can I?"

_So that's the kind of class this is, _Allen thought, slowly following the boys to a table near the door while wearing an expression combining shock at Will's attitude and anxiety over the class itself. _When I should be happy I'm getting a "halfway decent" teacher. He can't be that bad, right?_

As the three others chattered about unknown people and teachers amongst themselves, Allen sat down, glanced around to see what textbooks the others were using, and pulled his own out of his bag. Lenalee definitely had the right idea; he wasn't just a month behind, but five years, too. Sleeping had been far more useful yesterday, but what if homework was assigned? He didn't want a bad reputation! Flipping the book open to the first page, Allen quickly began to read; even if the words didn't make very much sense, at least there was a chance he'd remember them. If he ever needed to make one of these things…

"Hey, what are you doing?" Will reached over and tugged the book out from under Allen's nose and closed it. "You don't have to read it like that, Allen. This class is all about practice and notes and things like that."

"Practice?" Allen reached out to tug on his book sharply, trying to retrieve it. "You mean…"

"Making the potions, of course," Albert interjected. "You get essays for homework, though."

Will sighed and shook his head sadly. "Never understood why… Hey," he added, brightening suddenly, "are you three going to take Potions next year, too?"

"Sure, why not." Sean yawned and stretched his arms behind his head. "If I get a good mark on the OWL, I'll have more options for the future."

Albert nodded in agreement. "Besides, Potions are useful to know."

"And NEWT-level ones are way more interesting," Sean added.

"If you like them." Will glanced around the room in boredom. "I'd rather not take it if I don't have to. What about you, Allen?"

"Uh…" Allen was completely taken by surprise. Would he even be here next year? "I don't know…"

"Yeah, there's time." Sean leaned backwards over his chair and looked at the other side of the room, upside-down to his eyes. "We've all got months until the OWLs, and then we don't need to decide on our courses for next year until the new term. That's almost a year."

Allen decided he definitely needed to ask about what OWLs were. Somehow, he didn't think it was the animal.

"My mother said you have to start thinking about this in advance," Albert told the three, fidgeting nervously in his seat. "Your career is decided by what you take, after all! If you don't get your NEWTs – but you need your OWLs – and you have to choose the right classes…"

"Albert, everyone wants to do as best as they can in the OWLs," Sean assured him. "Your mum isn't the only one who'll be upset if her darling child doesn't get enough."

"Mine won't care." Will received two glares for that comment.

"Your mum's a Muggle." Albert's icy glare somehow looked more intimidating over his glasses. 

"What does that have to do with anything?" Suddenly, Will's relaxed stance looked threatening, like a cat ready to pounce at any moment. Allen quickly pulled his book back and slumped back into his chair; he glanced around the room, wondering if anyone was noticing the dispute, but all the other occupants of tables seemed to be deep in discussion. Where was the professor?!

"Um, hey," he said nervously, "you don't need to-"

"Nothing wrong with my family, is there?" Will said softly, ignoring the Exorcist.

"Only that she won't care about how many OWLs you'll get," Albert said calmly.

"Well, then." Will grinned at him and kicked his feet up onto the table. "No problem."

Allen just stared blankly; what had just happened, and how had the pair gone from such hostility to this friendly attitude in just moments? Leaning over to Sean, who was passively watching the exchange, he whispered, "What just happened?"

"Huh? Oh, you're Muggle-born, too, right? I guess you wouldn't know about that sort of thing." Sean nodded to Will, who was laughing at something Albert had said and commenting on it. "Like him – well, sometimes a Muggle couple has a baby who can be a witch or wizard, like you or Will. It doesn't mean they're any worse at magic, or can't do certain things, but sometimes they're disliked by certain witches and wizards. Those're usually purebloods, like Albert."

"Purebloods?"

"Well, they're… they're wizards who don't have any Muggles in their family at all. Some of them don't like halfbloods or Muggle-born wizards. A lot of the bad ones are in Slytherin, though."

"Oh… They're not all bad, though, right?" Allen asked cheerfully.

"Well, no… Albert's a pureblood, for instance, and the Weasleys are all really nice to Muggles, and they're-"

"Weasley?" Will sat up, swinging his feet off the table again. "Did someone mention them?"

"Yeah, I was explaining to Allen about the pureblood thing." Sean paused thoughtfully, then grinned slyly. "You were thinking of Ginny, weren't you?"

The blonde boy blushed, but shook his head. "I want to work at their joke shop," he muttered. "It's really amazing. I've been a fan of those twins for years."

"You were their _test subject_," Albert muttered distastefully.

"…and I like jokes, too."

"You might need Potions for that," Sean told his friend. "If you ever want to be anything more than a shop clerk, anyway."

A cough from the front of the room alerted the four boys to the fact that the rest of the room was completely silent, and had been for a few minutes now. Allen turned to look in the direction of the cough; in front of the blackboard stood a rather large man with a long, grey moustache and a large stomach that stretched the front of his robes. He was looking at the table sternly. Immediately, the trio snapped their mouths shut and looked meekly at the table. The professor gave an approving smile and – to Allen's surprise – turned away from them and addressed the class without even mentioning the conversation.

"Now then," he boomed, "today will be a practical class, so you will be needing your supplies today." There was a mad scramble as each unprepared student – well over half the class – scrambled to find these necessary items in their bags; Allen watched and followed. "Today you will be preparing…"

And so Allen's very first class began.

* * *

Time passed, and soon it was lunch. Lenalee couldn't help but feel, as she watched Allen and Lavi cheerfully gather their belongings and leave for their next classes, that even this time was too short. After spending the past three years of her life surrounded by family and friends – or being in contact with them – at all times, being without any one of them at any time was difficult to bear. Her morning had been filled with classes to capture her attention, but she was now facing a spare period along with a number of other sixth-years, and she was starting to feel the first pangs of loneliness.

_If only I had a class with Allen-kun or Lavi,_ she thought sadly, following some of the other students back to the common room. _Even having one of them nearby would make things so much easier…_ At least she was seeing Lavi next period. But Allen-kun wouldn't be there…

Lenalee's thoughts were interrupted, however, by a sharp crack. 

With a gasp, she jumped unconsciously, then whirled around as if the culprit were behind her… only to find an empty hall. It took her a moment of confused searching to notice a slightly open door leading to a classroom. A sharp voice – she thought it sounded like Professor McGonagall – could now be heard; was someone being reprimanded? Curious, Lenalee quietly made her way over to the door and peered inside. What she saw surprised her even more than the attention-catching sound.

Lenalee Lee had been in the 20th century for three days now, and exposed to magic for even more time than that. Nevertheless, she had never consciously seen magic performed until this moment.

She could barely stop herself from making a sound of delight short of actually covering her mouth to prevent it from escaping! Magic! Something was being transformed into something else right in front of her eyes, with no apparent scientific reason to explain it! Despite the sizeable number of failures – partially-transformed creatures, or nothing at all – she found herself in awe. These students had done something unique.

And somehow, she found herself desperately wishing that she too could perform magic.

It was only when the new teacups were collected and the students began to chatter animatedly as they packed their bags for the next class that Lenalee realized how much time she had spent watching the Transfiguration class – and how she was going to be late for her next one! Quickly slipping away from the door, she nearly ran through the halls to the classroom, occasionally looking over her shoulder to see if any of the younger students had caught her peeking. 

When she finally entered the History of Magic class, slightly out of breath and cheeks flushed more out of embarrassment than from the exercise, Lavi looked up and waved cheerfully. 

"Lenalee!" he called, smiling broadly and hopping off of a desk to come and greet her. "Been a while, hasn't it?"

Even without his playful wink, she understood. "It was a long period," she responded, starting to smile back until she came upon a sudden realization: she hadn't thought of Lavi or Allen-kun once the whole time. Her attention had been completely captured by the magic. With that guilt forming, she continued with a fixed smile. "It's good to see you, though, Lavi."

"Can't tell you how great it is to see a familiar face in this class, _finally_," he sighed exasperatedly. "The professor knows everyone by name, and so do all the kids – and they know my name by now, I guess – but they've known each other for years. Or months, for the first-years."

"You're so good with names, though," Lenalee said honestly, making her way to a seat near the front of the room; Lavi followed her and promptly sat down on the desk part in a similar pose to the one he had been in earlier. "I wouldn't be surprised if you remembered everyone you've seen today!"

"Yeah, well…" Lavi gave an embarrassed grin. "Still had to learn more in a day than those kids ever did, right?"

Lenalee nodded, remembering her experience of consciously seeing magic for the first time, and wondering how long it took those students to learn. They were younger than she was, too… "So," she finally asked, idly watching a small group of sixth-years enter the classroom as they chattered animatedly, "you really like this class, don't you? At lunch, you were so excited…"

"Yeah," he agreed, smiling broadly. "It's fascinating! There's all this history that I've never heard about from that grandpa – maybe _he_ doesn't even know about it! There were so many events that seemed mysterious, or not quite explained properly, and I've already been able to fix so many details in the records in just one day!" He leaned closer, voice dropping slightly as the aforementioned group of students made their way past the Exorcists and to the back of the class. "I almost can't believe that the clan hasn't heard of magic, though, even if none of us can do it ourselves. Witches and wizards have been so important in history, and yet-"

"Maybe you haven't learned about it because you're an apprentice," Lenalee suggested, trying to make it sound less harsh than the words implied. Fortunately, Lavi didn't seem to take offence at it.

"Maybe," he sighed. "I bet I'll still know more than they do!"

Lenalee smiled back warmly, pulled out her textbook, and watched Lavi hop off the desk and make his way to another chair as the class began. _It's good that Lavi has found something that he really enjoys – I hope Allen-kun has, too. It will make this separation easier for them… I should find something too! I can't keep relying on those two to be my only link to home, right?_

Yet why couldn't she think of anything other than that one Transfiguration class?

* * *

By the end of his final class, Allen was exhausted. His Mondays were, unfortunately, filled with classes that he was _required_ to take. After such a long day of school that was such a drastic departure from his normal schedule of traveling and/or relaxing, he was not surprised that he was nearly ready to skip dinner and crawl into his nice, comfy bed instead.

…but for now, he was still in the hallways with a trio of boys who, although also weary, still had untapped reserves of energy that they were using to whine about the ridiculous amount of homework they had. Having never experienced homework while at the Order, this was a new experience for the white-haired boy. Eventually, he too would realize the stress of such a great amount of work – especially for the OWLs! – but for now, he was surprisingly calm.

This feeling remained even when the four were suddenly approached by an equal number of girls, causing the three teenage males to jump nervously and immediately begin to act according to the stereotype for their age and gender. Between being tongue-tied, talking over one another, and general unintelligent conversation, they not only surprised Allen – who hadn't seen this side of… well, anyone… since Lavi's meeting with Eliade – but also stunningly failed to impress a single girl. Three of them exchanged amused glances, and quickly began to giggle. Allen watched in disbelief as his new friends managed to misinterpret this as encouragement, and acted even less intelligently than ever before. He knew he wasn't exactly a model of wisdom, but to act this way…

Distracted by the exchange, Allen failed to notice the fourth girl heading towards him until she was right in front of him, smiling politely and tapping his shoulder. He jumped. 

"Ah- I'm sorry, I didn't notice…"

"It's all right," she told him, smiling. "I haven't seen you before, have I? You're one of the new students, then?"

"Y-yeah," he muttered, trying to calm his racing heart. "I'm sorry about this, I was just really surprised-"

"It's good to have at least one of you in Gryffindor House." 

"You're a Gryffindor? Too, I mean. I'm not used to this arrangement yet."

"A fifth-year, like you. We're in the same classes for everything!"

"I haven't been paying attention to anything besides the lessons," Allen admitted sheepishly. "It's a very different experience."

"Oh, you mean the other magic schools aren't at all like Hogwarts?" she asked, a hint of awe in her voice. "My family has never gone to any other school – my brothers, my parents, and all my other relatives have mostly been in Gryffindor, too," she added proudly. "Where were you before coming here?"

"Ah…" Damn, he thought. How was he supposed to answer this? "Far away. Not a well-known place."

"Oh." She looked disappointed, but that quickly faded into a thoughtful expression. "You know, you remind me of someone…"

"I do?" Allen blinked. "I've never heard that before."

"I bet!" The girl grinned. "It's just… your height… your shape… the scar… it's almost like-"

She was cut off, however, by the call of one of the other girls, who was waving. "Ginny! Come on, we don't want to leave you behind!"

"Right!" She waved back, then turned to Allen. "I'm Ginny Weasley, by the way. I suppose I'll see you in classes tomorrow?"

"I'm Allen Walker – and yes, I suppose…?" She nodded, and spun around to catch up with her friends, leaving Allen to remember where he'd heard her name before. Hadn't Will said something about her…?

"Oi, Allen!" Speaking of the blonde boy, he looked incredulous at the moment. "That was _Ginny_ you were talking to!"

"Um… yes, I suppose it was." Allen shrugged. "I'm trying to remember what you were saying about her earlier…"

"That he likes her?" Sean suggested, popping up over his friend's shoulder.

"That was it," Allen agreed. "She seems nice."

"She _is_," Will said earnestly. "She's great at everything, too."

"She reminds me of Lavi, too." That earned blank looks from the other three boys, leaving Allen to elaborate. "You know, my friend… from the other school? I think it's the red hair."

"Well," Sean said dryly, clapping Will on the back, "you have nothing to worry about from _this_ guy."

Will nodded, and Albert seemed to agree, leaving Allen to wonder what they meant as the four made their way to dinner – and just in time, too, as Allen, having forgotten about his tiredness thanks to the social interactions, found himself to have his usual appetite. Despite having seen Lenalee only hours earlier, he was tremendously relieved to see her again – and Lavi, too, who arrived only a little later – and enjoyed sharing stories of the other half-day. It was an enjoyable meal.

Afterwards, Allen and Lenalee both stood up to follow the rest of the students back to the common room when the white-haired Exorcist noticed that his three newfound friends were heading in a different direction.

"Hey," he called, gesturing to Lenalee that he'd only be a moment. "Hey, where are you going?"

"To see Chester," Sean responded over his shoulder. "He wasn't in classes today – the girls told us he's not feeling well."

"Got a fever," Albert mumbled, and made a strange sign with his hands that made Allen stare at him oddly. Was that supposed to ward off illness?

"…so we just want to see him, that's all. Oh, you don't have to come," Sean assured the white-haired boy, who had just opened his mouth to express that possibility. "You've never met him, after all. We'll just tell him that his new roommate's wishing for him to get better, too."

"Thanks," Allen told him gratefully, and hurried back to Lenalee. 

The rest of the night was spent doing homework, as was the next, and the next. Chester recovered. Lenalee spent her free afternoons watching the Transfiguration class – and eventually the Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts ones, too. Lavi became very well-rested and somehow managed to accumulate plenty of knowledge about the history of magic. And so the days passed.

* * *

It wasn't until the middle of October that the Exorcists faced the first piece of evidence of the reality of this time period, and its connection to their own home.

The next day would be the first trip to Hogsmeade of the year; most of the dinner conversation that night involved this trip. Even the two Exorcist students had been caught up in it: Allen's new friends had told him of Honeydukes, and Lenalee was cautioning him against buying too much (and of the sort of candy he would find there). Allen had just begun to protest against her idea of money restrictions – as if she had authority! – when the pair felt hands on their shoulders and turned to find Lavi, finger over his lips to indicate silence. Sharing a glance, they quietly followed him out into the hall.

The first thing he said was: "You finished eating, right?"

When they nodded, Lavi breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good. I know how Allen can be if he hasn't-"

"Get to the point, Lavi," Allen muttered, slightly irritated.

"It isn't something I can just _tell_ you – I'll have to show you." Lavi's green eye glanced around the corridor briefly. "You don't see any of your friends here, do you? No danger of being followed?"

"You're not showing us anything illegal, are you?" Lenalee murmured, giving her friend a worried look. "This is supposed to be a place of safety for us... I don't want us to be separated, but…"

"No! No, Lenalee, it's perfectly legal," Lavi assured her, "but it has to do with… a mutual acquaintance."

Allen looked at Lenalee, bewildered. Lenalee sighed. "Someone from the Order, Allen-kun."

His puzzled expression didn't disappear. "So 'mutual acquaintance' means-"

"Er, why don't I just bring you two to the library and show you," Lavi interrupted, tugging on their uniforms nervously. Allen didn't appear to understand, but the younger Exorcists followed unquestioningly despite the unanswered ones that had been raised in their minds. What had Lavi discovered about the Order, and why was it in a magic school? Would this have any effect on their return?

By the time they entered the library, all three Exorcists could barely refrain from spilling their thoughts as quickly as possible: Allen and Lenalee's minds were full of questions, and Lavi was anxious to reveal the knowledge he had discovered. The trio nearly _ran_ to the bookshelf where Lavi had left the book, and didn't even have the patience to sit down at a nearby table to read it, preferring to crouch around the tome while Lavi flipped through the pages delicately.

Finally, he broke the silence. "Here," he told them, pointing to a paragraph. "It's this one."

It didn't take the two younger Exorcists very long to find exactly what Lavi had noticed. Almost immediately, Allen's gray eyes met Lenalee's purple, and they exchanged a shocked glance and gasped. 

"Master?!" Allen yelped, earning a _shut up! We'll get in trouble! _look from Lavi. "What's he doing in a book?"

"A book on the history of _wizards_," Lenalee elaborated. "I mean, I suppose that, being a General, he'd have more opportunities to make contact with the magical world, but… for him to be mentioned in their _history_…"

"And to have an entire paragraph to himself," Lavi added.

"…he'd have to have done some very important things."

"Keep reading."

Lenalee did so. Finally, after a brief period of silence, she closed the book and frowned. "It doesn't say very much," she murmured, "only that he lived around the turn of the century-"

"Which we knew already-"

"Be quiet, _Lavi_- and that he was involved in the apprehensions of a number of dark wizards, destruction of Inferi, and successfully hiding magic from Muggles around the world… and that he died on one of those expeditions at a fairly young age. You don't think…" Lenalee looked up for a moment to find Lavi nodding thoughtfully and Allen looking completely bewildered.

"…that the book's referring to the Earl and the Clan of Noah," Lavi finished. "The Earl could be some kind of magician…"

"And Inferi are the undead," Lenalee continued, her voice slowly rising in volume. "And the hiding of magic – he's covering it up. The Muggles are-" She made a quick gesture to each Exorcist. "All this time witches and wizards have been involved and we're not aware of it."

"Yet…" Allen was still bemused. "Wouldn't we be aware of the involvement of non-compatible humans?"

"Most of the Order's employees aren't Exorcists," Lenalee reminded him. "There could be witches – well, mostly wizards, I'd suppose – among the Science Section, or the medical staff, or anything else. And the Order has branches all over the world, too."

"Science… section…" Lavi snorted. "Can't picture Reever in a pointy hat and robes very well."

Lenalee punched him.

"Uh – so anyway," Allen said quickly as Lavi opened his mouth to comment, "basically, what you two are saying is – Master is a wizard, magic is involved in our battles, and we're not aware of this because it's being hidden from us… and Master will become famous for this?" Lenalee and Lavi nodded. "So we've really been exposed to magic all this time. It didn't just begin with that last mission."

"It could even be that some of the mysterious incidents Finders investigate are related," Lenalee added. "And that would be an easy role for a witch or wizard to intentionally take without looking suspicious." She sighed. "The question _now_ is how we hide our knowledge – of this… this… _time,_ of magic, of _them_ – from the wizards back home."

"Why?"

"Allen-kun, do you really want to forget all of this?" Lenalee asked in a soft tone. "I don't just mean the existence of magic itself and its involvement in our lives, but _everything_ about this place – all the wonderful people we've met, and the things we've seen?"

"We _should_, Lenalee." Lavi grunted and sat back on his heels, breathing a long sigh. "It's the future, right? With our knowledge of it, we could seriously screw things up for here when we return back home."

"Lavi…" Lenalee shook her head furiously. "I _won't_ forget it!" she cried, then looked around quickly to make sure no one had heard her outburst. "I _won't_," she continued at a lower volume. "Even though it means I'll remember the pain of being separated for a long time from my brother and everyone else, I don't want to forget about what happens here. I want to remember magic, and… and all the wonderful people I've met. Don't you feel that way too, Allen-kun?"

"Ah… Lenalee…" _Don't drag me into this argument!_ he thought nervously. "I also want to remember my friends here, but-"

"Then it's settled." Lenalee beamed triumphantly at Lavi. "We'll just have to keep what happens here a secret. It can't be too difficult, right? Since we're already hiding the truth from the other Hogwarts students right now…"

"Two against one." Lavi threw his hands in the air and grinned back at Lenalee. "You win. But-" he started as Lenalee opened her mouth to speak again, "any investigating we do about the past is done in this time period. There're plenty of resources here, and I don't wanna get caught back then and have our memories erased after all this because one of us was too curious."

"All right. Then it's settled." Lenalee stood up, the book still clutched in her hands. "I'll take this back to my dorm and see if there's any more information on… on our mutual acquaintances. You two should stay here and look for more information – since you're a teacher's assistant, Lavi, you might be allowed to look in the Restricted Area."

"Right, 'cause Cross's actions aren't for children…"

"Then I'll be off!"

Lavi and Allen watched as Lenalee nearly ran from the library. Once the door had closed behind her, Lavi nudged Allen's shoulder gently.

"Huh? Lavi? Did you think of something new already?"

"No… Hey, Allen, you don't think… Hasn't Lenalee been behaving a bit… _strange_ recently?"

"Has she?" Allen's wide grey eyes stared blankly at his friend. "What do you mean?"

"She's being defensive. Hiding something."

"Hiding--?!"

"Yeah." Lavi nodded and stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Last week, she was reading something at breakfast before I came over – a book, I thought – but when she saw me, she closed it and put it away before I could see. On purpose."

"Now that you mention it…" Allen bit his lip. "Two days ago, she went in a different direction from her classes after lunch… And she spends most of her time in her dorm room…"

"And then all this defensive behaviour about remembering what happened here. You don't think…"

"Hm?" There was no hint of understanding in Allen's eyes. Lavi sighed.

"She's probably in love, Allen."

That got a reaction from the younger boy. "W-What? In love?" Allen suddenly looked worried. "But with who? Won't she have to leave him when this is all over anyway? And we've only been here for a few weeks; how could she have time to…"

"You'd better go and find her before she writes another love note or something," Lavi muttered sullenly. He prodded Allen in the back with a finger. "Go on."

"Y-yeah, okay." With a nervous glance back at Lavi, Allen also departed the room. Now alone, Lavi leaned back against a bookshelf and shook his head.

"He's as dumb as Kanda. Really, believing that about love…" He glanced at the door again. "She is hiding _something_, though…"

_But why is she so interested in magic, and why doesn't she want to forget about it after this…? 

* * *

_

Allen awoke the next morning to the sounds of a yell and loud laughter coming from a nearby room. 

"Ughhhh," he heard one of his roommates – Chester, he thought – groan from a nearby bed. "What are those sixth-years _doing_ there…"

"Bet someone got a girlfriend," Albert muttered into his pillow.

"Or had se-"

"In _Hogwarts_, Will. _Really_."

"Well, it could happen-"

"Maybe they're just excited for the trip." Allen yawned and sat up in bed, noting that he was the only one to have done so. "First of the year, right…"

"What, in this weather?" Albert rolled over and gave Allen a strange look. "There's going to be a storm!"

"And anyway, Hogsmeade is nothing new to them. Or us," Will added.

"New to me," Allen murmured, swinging his legs over the side of the bed and stretching. "There's supposed to be a great candy shop, isn't there… what was its name again…?"

"Honeyduke's, yeah. And there's Zonko's Joke Shop, too." The blonde boy gave Allen a mischievous grin, which the Exorcist promptly ignored.

_Lavi would like that_, he thought. _Wonder if anyone's told him about it. _(The new information on Cross had driven the shop from his mind temporarily.)

"'Course, you could always have ordered something from the Weasleys if you needed it that badly, but…"

"I'm going to breakfast," Allen interrupted, pulling on his Order-made coat.

Allen met up with Lenalee and Lavi at breakfast – Lavi _had_ heard of the shop already, as it turns out, from some fourth-years in his class – who, as it turned out, were equally anxious to see Hogsmeade in daylight for the first time. They talked of little else during breakfast, and even as they passed Filch's name- and item smuggling-checks, until, a few minutes later, in the middle of a conversation about the allocation of their money, Allen stopped walking. A growing feeling of apprehension was clearly visible on his face.

"Ah… Lenalee, Lavi…" He swallowed nervously. "I think… I might have forgotten my wallet…"

There was a long pause. "Allen-kun," Lenalee finally said, her eyes darting back to the castle, "you won't be long, will you?"

"What?"

"Well… you have to return for it, right? I'm sure Filch will understand…"

"And triple-check you two more times for safety," Lavi added.

Allen licked his lips hesitantly, then nodded. "I'll be right back."

Fortunately, only a few minutes were needed for the search, and Allen was only checked one extra time before being reunited with his companions. Lenalee gave him a strange look, but before Allen had the chance to inquire, she had already continued walking towards the village. The white-haired boy gave his other friend a quizzical look; Lavi merely shrugged.

"She was reading one of those books again, though," he told Allen in a low voice. "_Hogwarts: A History_. Dunno what she's looking for, though… always flipping pages; never reading it all at once."

"A book cover?" Allen whispered. "For some romantic magazine, or-"

He still believed that? Lavi sighed wearily. "Yeah, maybe that, Allen. Or maybe Lenalee wants a love potion- look, let's just catch up to her." For by now, Lenalee had paused in the middle of the street to give the pair a suspicious look.

"A love potion!" Allen squeaked. He promptly made a mental note to ask Professor Slughorn about that…

The wind was strong enough that it took the trio nearly twice as long to reach Hogsmeade as it should have, and the town they finally arrived in was nothing like what they expected. A number of shops were boarded up – including Zonko's, Lavi noted disappointedly – and the weather was miserable enough that the streets were almost completely empty of people. Lavi quickly made his way to the Three Broomsticks (he claimed he wanted to save them a table, but Lenalee explained later that there was an exceptionally beautiful barmaid working there), and Allen and Lenalee, both having a fondness for sweets at times, decided to find Honeyduke's first.

Fortunately, _that_ was open. After being exposed to magic for a few weeks, the pair was well aware of the dangers that lurked in the guise of sweets; the incredible selection here meant that even after spending most of the money Lenalee had allotted for this particular outing, neither Allen nor Lenalee had even really sampled the selection of what they believed to be "safe" for consumption. Pockets loaded, Lenalee finally managed to drag Allen out the door to meet Lavi.

"The wind's stronger," she murmured as they left, and promptly latched onto Allen's arm for stability. Although this made walking slightly more difficult, Allen had to admit that the weight of two people provided significant protection from being tossed around by the wind… and a small part of him felt happy at being able to support the light Lenalee. By the time they reached the Three Broomsticks, the wind and cold had put spots of red in both their cheeks. Lenalee muttered something about being grateful for her short hair, and they both grinned at that.

Lavi waved to them from a nearby table, where he had three hot bottles of Butterbeer – the specialty, apparently – waiting for them. After close examination, Lenalee discovered that the heat was due to Lavi not ordering them until just a few minutes before – he'd spent the rest of the time watching Madam Rosmerta. Allen snorted; Lenalee merely rolled her eyes and took a sip of Butterbeer.

"Anyway, I've been doing some research on the deeds of our… acquaintances," Lenalee finally said, reaching into her bag and around some Chocolate Frogs to pull out a long scroll filled with writing. "I know it's only been a day since our conversation, but I came across something in the History of Magic text when I was researching something on- well, that's not important, but it does say something about General Cross and some of his comrades."

The two boys leaned in closer. "What does it say?"

"More than the last book, although… well, it says that thirty witches and wizards – Cross Marian being chief of them – were involved in these apprehensions. Little is known about the incidents because of the secretive nature of the missions, and the Ministry never released any information to the public in case some of these dark wizards escaped." She frowned. "So maybe some of the Noah remain… free."

"Or maybe we get 'em later," Lavi commented, taking a gulp of Butterbeer. "If only Cross is mentioned in these books, and he's supposed to die young… well, what about the rest of us?"

"Is that something we should know?" Lenalee murmured, rolling up the scroll. "Whether we die or not…"

Silence fell upon the group. Finally, Allen spoke. 

"I think…" The other two looked up at him. "I would prefer not to know the outcome of these battles… After all, we have to think about winning, don't we? We have to try our best."

"And maybe we could change history," Lenalee added. "If we don't know what the future holds…"

"Right, the parasitic types have spoken." Lavi slapped the table with his hand firmly. "But as for me…"

Allen and Lenalee gave him an anxious look.

"…I concur." The Bookman apprentice grinned at them. "Well, you're right!"

"There's still something else to think about, though." Lenalee tucked the scroll back into her bag unconsciously. "We now know that twenty-nine other members of the Order are able to perform magic. It's likely that they're spread out between the various branches, but even if an equal number was assigned to each branch, there are still about four or five at HQ."

Lavi snapped his fingers. "That nurse. I _swear_ she's-"

"And to identify them, we should try to recall strange events that occurred around them," Lenalee interrupted, glaring at Lavi. "Nothing strange has happened around the nurse."

"Wizards… aren't immortal, are they?" Allen asked. "When the level 4 attacked… Johnny, he… he was strangely unharmed despite being in the centre of violence at times… Ah, n-not that I'm unhappy about it, but…"

"It could be," Lenalee said softly. "If he used a spell to distract the akuma, or prevent himself from being harmed somehow…"

"I just can't believe it." Allen bit his lip and stared at the table sadly. "Some of our friends… our companions… are keeping such important secrets from us. If the Earl really does have powers beyond that of Dark Matter, then shouldn't the Order be aware of it?"

"They probably do," Lenalee pointed out. "General Cross is… well, a General, after all. That's a high-ranking position – equal to my brother – and it's possible that… some of them… hold other important positions, too."

"Yeah, but not all those positions are gained by merit alone. Ahhh, mug's empty…" Lavi gave a disappointed sigh. "Allen, you're not going to drink that, are- oh, you _are_? Hey, no need to get so violent!- Anyway, what about, say, the LeVerrier family? There's plenty of them at the top."

"Who knows…"

A small group of fourth-years entered and occupied the table next to theirs; the three Exorcists immediately decided it was time for a nice change of topic. After about ten minutes, though, Lavi had a sudden thought.

"Lenalee…" He gestured to her bag. "That scroll you had earlier – it was full of writing, wasn't it? But you barely read anything…"

Lenalee blushed a deep red. "It's nothing! Really! Just… some notes…"

"Oh _really_?" Lavi leaned closer and grinned; the female Exorcist immediately jumped up from her seat, nearly knocking over the now-empty bottles of Butterbeer, and grabbed her bag. 

"I have to leave now," she muttered, still embarrassed, and nearly _ran_ to the door.

"Well," Lavi said, shrugging and leaning back again, "something's definitely going on with her. Ah- Allen?" The younger boy was staring at the door in shock, not even moving to blink. "Allen? You okay?"

"…blushed… Lavi, she… blushed…"

"Congratulations, Allen. You're not blind," Lavi muttered sarcastically.

"…so that means…" A look of horror crept onto Allen's face. "She really is… in love…"

"Allen, not this _again-_"

"That's what her notes were full of! His name, or – or the recipe for a love potion – or his schedule-"

"Written so neatly?"

"…and she's probably going off to meet him right now!" Allen stood up quickly, succeeding in knocking the bottles over (which Lavi quickly scrambled to grab before they rolled off the table). "Lavi, we have to find them!"

"Allen, control your jealousy for just a moment-"

"Jealousy?" Allen stared blankly at Lavi. "What are you talking about?"

Lavi's eye widened. "You don't… want to break them up? You don't mind seeing Lenalee with another guy?"

"He needs to be warned, Lavi!"

"_What_?"

"Since Komui-san isn't here himself to demonstrate what happens to Lenalee's suitors, any boyfriend will have to… have to…" Allen now began to look ill (possibly from all the rapid emotional changes?). "Face Komui-san…"

"Ah. …Ya know, Allen, I don't think that's a concern right now."

"But he…"

"I guarantee that you'll be able to warn him yourself some other time."

Although Allen was not assuaged, it was to Lavi's immense relief that they found Lenalee only moments later, seeking shelter (alone) in Honeyduke's. The topic of romance was not brought up even a single time on the journey back.

And romance was completely forgotten the next day, when news of a cursed student began to spread…

"Seventh-year, wasn't it?" Lavi slid into the open space next to Lenalee during the lunch hour. "And she was cursed?"

"By a necklace, yeah." Allen told him in between mouthfuls of mashed potatoes. "She was from Gryffindor, too."

"And to think, we were so close…" Lenalee drew designs in her lunch with a fork absentmindedly. "Perhaps we could have done something…"

"To stop a curse? Are you _kidding_, Lenalee?! The only thing we can do is kill akuma." Lavi reached over and stole a piece of carrot from her plate. "Terrible, though, isn't it. Wasn't she on the Quidditch team?"

"The what?" Allen and Lenalee asked in unison.

"Ahhh, never mind… And I bet she was hot, too."

* * *

At this time of night, Lenalee's footsteps, though slow and careful, could still be heard throughout the common room. Even though only a few days had passed since the news of the cursed seventh-year had spread among the students, it was evident that serious security measures were not being taken at the moment. She paused at the portrait, considering the possibility of leaving, then decided the risk was too great and slunk into a darkened corner of the room.

Despite the dark, Lenalee pulled out the scroll she had read from in Hogsmeade, unrolling the top portion and placing it on the floor in front of her. With one hand, she gripped the wand given to her weeks ago.

_This time, it's going to work! It _has_ to!_

Trembling, she held it out in front of her and whispered, "_Lumos_."

Nothing happened. Lenalee's other hand clenched the scroll tightly – unreadable without light – and it crumpled. Still holding the wand in front of her, she repeated the phrase again, to no avail. As Lenalee opened her mouth to attempt the spell a third time, she heard a gasp.

It hadn't come from her.

Scrambling to her feet, Lenalee hissed, "Who's there?" In the silence, she realized she could hear the breathing, as agitated as her own, from just a metre or so away. With no other sound, it seemed almost as if they should be able to hear the pounding of her heart. _Did they see? Does someone know now that I can't… I can't…_

"Lenalee Lee?" A light appeared in front of her, illuminating the caster's face. "So you can't perform magic after all…"

Lenalee's eyes widened. Of all the people that could have found her… 

"Why is someone that can't perform magic here in Hogwarts? This can't be allowed!"

…one of the sixth-year prefects, Hermione Granger.

Lenalee was definitely in trouble.

And it only took nearly eight months…

* * *

I just want to say **thank you** to all the amazing people who reviewed this story. It really does make the writer feel happier to see that people are reading it and have things to say. Unlike many fanfic writers, though, I do love and accept constructive criticism (ie: not "I hate the pairing, change it" or "your story sucks" – not that I got any of the second type, but you know…), and I'll do my best to improve the story when I get it.

Okay, responses to questions (this is going to take a while):

To everyone who commented on the HP characters playing a big role: From what I understood by reading the HP series, the amount of students in a year within each House is actually fairly small (after all, we've seen… what, under ten sixth-year Gryffindors?). Since Allen and Lenalee are in the correct years to interact with them, yes, they'll be in it (as shown in this chapter) and they'll probably become friends just because Allen, Lenalee, and Lavi are nice people who get along well with others and make friends with everyone. However, they're not going to play large roles in the story since it's ultimately about the three Exorcists, and those three are going to stay close to each other throughout the story. I think the fifth-year OCs will have more visibility time, and they're… well… pretty unimportant.

Akuma may or may not appear in this story. I haven't decided yet. xD

I've received some responses saying Allen doesn't seem like himself, and, well, I think they're absolutely right. One of the reasons DGM is such a wonderful series is because the characters are more complex and unusual than those in most comics of the same genre. Allen especially is a bit of a mystery at times – he's much more serious than he acts at times, but he does hide it, and… well… I think that's going to be a challenge. But I'll work on it! 

As for Allen's, er, "unusual" features: I've been holding back on writing those in because of what's going on with Lenalee in recent chapters – I won't spoil it for you, but she might get some attention herself – but I think that'll be resolved in time for the next chapter… where Allen's arm/eye will be noticed by more than just the few people we've met so far. That's going to be a part of it. I won't spoil it for you, though.

I don't think I should take another eight months for the next one, but I should really update The Clownfish first… but after that… =)


	6. Scroll 6

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: Anyone who seems remotely interesting isn't mine.

Not proud of this chapter; it's boring. Fear not, though; the HP characters will never appear this much ever again. The next chapter will be more interesting, I promise.

* * *

Scroll 6: Yeah, I'd Like To Know Why Allen's Scar Looks Like A Cross, Too.

Most people, when they find themselves in a stressful situation, fail to behave rationally and make incredibly stupid mistakes. Lenalee Lee, on the other hand, had faced death, zombies, and murderous older brothers, although not necessarily in that order. When faced with the situation of being discovered that she cannot perform magic despite being in a magic school, Lenalee behaved quite rationally.

…Which is not to say that she could convince anyone of her innocence, particularly when that "anyone" had just seen her inability with their own eyes. She did, however, manage to not look like a complete fool, which is probably much better than what Allen or Lavi would have done.

"H-Hermione," she murmured, silently slipping her wand into a pocket. "You… wait, what do you mean, _after all_?" Lenalee suddenly demanded in a loud whisper. There didn't seem to be any point in denying it, not when it would do no good, and… "How could you have suspected me before this?"

The light moved; the other student had crossed her arms. "You're not in any of the classes that would require proof of magical ability," Hermione explained, a stern look upon her face. "And I've never seen you – or your friends; they must be the same as you – perform magic yourself." Her face softened momentarily. "If you're a Squib, you should really just be honest about it… sure, some Slytherins might be mean about it, but the rest of us will understand-"

"I'm not a Squib. And neither are Allen or Lavi." Lenalee calmly rolled up the scroll clutched in her hand and tucked it into her pocket. "Besides, would they even be allowed at Hogwarts if they can't…"

"_You're _here," Hermione pointed out. "But how could none of the professors notice? …All this time, a nonmagical student – you're a _Muggle_, aren't you!" She suddenly grabbed Lenalee's wrist tightly with her free hand; the Exorcist squirmed nervously. "I'm taking you to McGonagall."

"To…" Ah, that professor who had taken them to the Headmaster when they'd arrived. Lenalee breathed a miniscule sigh of relief; she had to be aware of their situation, then. This problem would probably end with the professor, unless Hermione wasn't content with the explanation-

The explanation! Lenalee knew enough of her classmate to be completely aware that if nothing was done about the three nonmagical Exorcists, the other girl would not be content to merely let the professors know about it. Either she'd have to be told of the situation (could she be trusted? Of course, Lenalee wasn't quite sure of how dangerous the world outside the school really was; to her, as long as the Earl wasn't around and letting akuma loose upon the world, it was rather safe indeed) or rumours might spread…

…and Lenalee certainly didn't feel like spending the next eight months of her life dousing rumours and fuelling discussion. Even that was the best-case scenario; if enough students learned of this and petitioned the school to expel the three Muggles, and if the Ministry heard of this…

They'd never make it back home…

But how could she be sure that Hermione would keep the truth to herself, assuming she would even be told about it in the first place? Lenalee would have to take a chance.

"…and even Dumbledore, who they've criticized for loving Muggles, not that it's a bad thing, of course, can't ignore you three if…"

Oh, had Hermione been speaking? Oops.

"Hermione." The other girl turned around, slightly irritated at the interruption. "Professor McGonagall already knows… as does the Headmaster. There's no use in telling them."

"And I should believe you?" Hermione demanded. "How do I know you're not-"

"We're being protected," Lenalee said quickly. "We- we're not in here to learn about magic secretly, or to infiltrate the school. Actually, this just sort of… happened."

"If that were the case, your memories would have been Modified. If you're honest to McGonagall, I'm sure the punishment will be more lenient, you should really-"

Hermione was about to open the exit! "The Ministry knows!" Lenalee hissed. "They're the ones who sent us here!" Judging from the look on her classmate's face, Lenalee had succeeded in capturing her attention. A Muggle would need a _very_ good story to explain why the Ministry, of all things, had allowed nonmagical people to know of this world – but how would a mere sixth-year student know if the claim were true or not?

"I don't believe you," Hermione muttered slowly, although the previous confidence seemed to be draining away. "Why would the Ministry…"

Lenalee took a deep breath and told the unbelievable truth: "We're not from this time period."

There was a predictable silence. The older girl turned back towards the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Wait!" Lenalee yanked her wrist back as hard as she could, nearly pulling them both backwards onto the floor. "It's the truth! The three of us met a witch by accident, who… well, I suppose she cast a spell on the three of us, and we found ourselves in the same location, only over a century in the future. That's why the Ministry knows."

"Because you're from the _past_," Hermione stated sarcastically. "And you really expect me to believe that? Or the Ministry, for that matter?"

"It's true," Lenalee murmured. "It really is. They were considering memory modification, but… I think they wanted to discover that time-travel spell for themselves. The three of us were sent here so we could be protected – from the war; we weren't given many details on it – so they could send us back when the spell was discovered."

Hermione continued to look sceptical. "The Ministry now believes a spell for time-travel exists? And they're sure this witch didn't merely modify-"

"They did think of that," Lenalee told her. "Yet with all the contradictory evidence… we hadn't seen automobiles before, although Lavi knew of them, and aeroplanes were unfamiliar… I do wonder why they're so small when the technology could probably be used for much more, but- Hermione, why do you look so surprised?"

"Ah… you… _really_ think aeroplanes are _small-_"

"Aren't they? I've only seen them in the Ministry."

Hermione's grip on her arm slackened; it was as if the energy to submit Lenalee to the proper authorities – that is, beyond the level of a prefect – had drained away entirely. "You're serious," she murmured, giving Lenalee a stern look and apparently finding no sign of untruthfulness. "You actually came from…"

"Eighteen ninety-six," Lenalee finished. "And I'm _terribly_ sorry for any inconvenience or trouble we've caused…"

Hermione, deep in thought, unconsciously released Lenalee and wandered over to a nearby chair to sit down. "This is just so unbelievable," she murmured, her voice calm yet with a hint of worry – and was that a bit of excitement? – that unnerved Lenalee slightly. "Three Muggles, who lived a hundred years ago, in Hogwarts today… Just think of the things scholars of history could learn from you!"

"But how would we explain our appearance here?" Lenalee asked, following her classmate to the centre of the room. The warmth of the fire was strangely calming. "I'll ask Lavi to consider it, though. Perhaps an anonymous submission to a museum or something…"

"…Even then, I really can't let you stay here." Hermione frowned. "Even if you _are_ being protected by the Ministry… even if you _are_ from a hundred years in the past… you three are still Muggles, aren't you? This is a school for witches and wizards, not a place to hide Muggles while the Ministry decides what to do with them. …Even if it is the safest place," she added as an afterthought.

"No one will find out-"

"I did!"

Lenalee turned crimson. "Then I won't try and practise anymore," she muttered, embarrassed. Under her breath, she added, "or not where anyone will find me." After all, Lenalee was not one to give up easily, was she!

"It isn't only that! Your class schedules are suspicious enough; didn't I mention that earlier? Eventually, someone else will notice that you've never used magic and-"

"Yet you had to actually see that I can't do it, right, Hermione? And you're the smartest in Hogwarts – no one else will even consider it," Lenalee pointed out.

It was Hermione's turn to blush. "There _was_ that one time with Professor Lupin…"

"…so if we're careful, no one will find out. Oh," Lenalee added, "and if… you don't tell anyone."

"I… How can I possibly do that?! As a prefect, it's my _duty_ to turn you in!"

"And if the Headmaster already knows?"

"If Dumbledore learns that a student has discovered your secret, he'll have to do something about it!"

"We're not harming anyone!"

"But this isn't right!"

A noise came from the boys' dormitory; both girls immediately paused in mid-sentence. Neither had realized their voices had slowly been growing louder and louder; had a student heard their conversation and discovered the secret for himself? Fortunately, no further sound was heard, although it was difficult for the pair to completely relax afterwards.

"Anyway," Hermione continued in a harsh whisper, "it's still my _duty_."

Lenalee was growing desperate; was there nothing she could do to convince the girl? Even if Dumbledore allowed the three to stay – unless Hermione was a terrible gossip, it was unlikely that anyone else would discover their secret from her – even being taken to the Headmaster's office could start rumours. If people began to pay attention to the Exorcists because of those…

Fortunately, Lenalee had an idea.

"Even if we are Muggles, we're not harming the school!" she hissed. "Lavi's even helping a professor!"

That caught Hermione's attention. "What?"

"I've been in those History of Magic classes; it looks like he's really helping Professor Binns! With Lavi's knowledge, even if it isn't of magic, he can teach new things! And…" Well, this was just a bit of an exaggeration, but Hermione would never know, right? "Sometimes, he's allowed to speak! I think the students will do much better in that class if he's there. They're actually paying attention!"

It wasn't something Lenalee had ever proved, as Lavi had turned out to be more of a distraction in her lecture, but he _had_ elaborated on some points once in a while. Lenalee could even recall some fourth-year girls enthusiastically asking him to clarify the day's lecture. …Although, now that she thought about it, they could have just been flirting with him.

"Are you sure," Hermione murmured, looking thoughtful. "If he really is helping…"

"Turning us in will be bad for Hogwarts," Lenalee concluded. "…And it's hardly as if we'll be causing mischief among other Muggles here, right? We're less familiar with the world now than you are."

"That's true… But… as a prefect…"

"I'll help other students study," Lenalee added quickly. Even after just a few weeks, Lenalee had gained a reputation as quite an intelligent student – possibly second only to Hermione herself, according to some of the teachers. Needless to say, it made her quite proud, especially when she thought about how Komui would react to the news that his sister was equally as intelligent as-

…but she'd never be able to tell him, would she?

"…If you three are really going to be such a help to Hogwarts without endangering us, too…" Hermione chewed her lip nervously. "I… I'll think about it, all right?"

Lenalee gave a relieved sigh. "Thank you, thank you so much, Hermione." She was sure the look on her face was almost absurdly happy. The awkward silence and the strange look on Hermione's face confirmed it. "_Thank you_." And yet, she was so grateful that she couldn't say anything else.

"But Lenalee," Hermione asked as they climbed the stairs to their dormitory, "why did you think that a Muggle could even learn magic in the first place? Why were you trying to use it?"

The memory of that first Transfiguration class drifted into Lenalee's mind. "I… it just looked so amazing," she said softly. "It's one thing to know that magic exists, but to see it performed… I just had to try it myself."

"A Muggle can't do magic, though. You already know that."

"I know," Lenalee agreed. "I can't stop hoping that maybe, one day… like… an owl got lost somehow and never delivered the letter to me."

"It'd have found a way," Hermione assured her. "Even a century ago."

"Of course," Lenalee murmured as they reached their room. Yet, somehow, even with that confirmation, she couldn't burst that bubble of hope. Hermione didn't know about the Order, after all. If they could keep her from leaving in any possible way – even death… and if anyone could prevent an owl from finding its target…

Lenalee had long since learned that, as long as there was a faint shred of hope for her to cling to, anything was a possibility. She'd believed – hoped – that Allen would return to her.

And he had.

…So maybe, _just maybe_, this could work, too. She'd just have to keep trying.

* * *

The first test of Hermione's secret-keeping skills came the next morning. Allen had just settled down for the first portion of breakfast when he noticed the brown-haired girl giving him a suspicious look from farther down the table. After a moment or two of shock, he turned to Lenalee, who was sitting on his left, in the opposite direction.

"Lenalee," he asked, tugging at her sleeve, "there's a weird girl staring at me."

Lenalee glanced around him for a moment; Hermione quickly turned away. "Oh, she's from my Potions class," Lenalee murmured, turning back to her breakfast. "It's nothing, really."

It was, of course. Could the other girl be any more conspicuous?!

Lenalee glanced over in that direction; a black-haired boy – Harry, that was his name; he was probably the best in Potions – was talking to Hermione, and another boy, with red hair (whose name Lenalee couldn't remember – he stood out less in the class, after all) looked as if he was trying to persuade Hermione to do something. The girl was adamantly refusing… good for her.

"Lenalee?" Allen asked, tugging at her sleeve again. "Is something wrong?"

"No, it's nothing, Allen-kun."

"But you've got your fork in the table…" He pointed to the item, which was somehow wedged into the table. Apparently, Lenalee had missed her egg and discovered the table instead. "You're distracted."

"She could be trying to eat the table, Allen." Lavi slid into the seat on Allen's other side. At his friend's glare, he added, "Well, with _your_ appetite, I wouldn't be surprised if _you_ tried it, right?"

Lavi narrowly missed a punch to the face.

"It's… it's _really_ all right, Allen-kun." Lenalee gave him a cheerful smile and went back to eating. "I just had a conversation with Hermione yesterday, and I… didn't say everything that I could have, so maybe she noticed."

"About… us?" Lavi asked in a low tone of voice. Allen immediately adopted a worried expression.

"No! Nothing like that," Lenalee said quickly, with a quick glance around the table to see if anyone had heard. (They hadn't.) "Not like what you mean, anyway."

"Then why was she looking at me?" Allen placed his cutlery on the table; to his friends, that was a bad sign. Allen never paused when eating, not even to talk. If one could make sounds that made a reasonable amount of sense when one's mouth was full…

"She was?" Lavi grinned suddenly, gave Allen a pat on the back, and straightened up. "Then that's all _I _need to know. Have a great day." He gave the two an exaggerated wink (knowing Lavi, that's what it was; it was difficult to tell at times with just one visible eye) and casually strolled off.

It took Lenalee just a moment to register the meaning of Lavi's sentence. "Oh God…" She sighed, head falling into hands. "He didn't…"

"He didn't what?" And Allen was back to chewing. "It wasn't a strange reason after all?"

"N-no, Allen-kun. It wasn't." Lenalee was suddenly unsure about not telling her friends the truth. It might be a better alternative than Lavi thinking that she'd talked to Hermione about Allen… and, judging from Lavi's reaction, in a way that Komui certainly wouldn't have approved of.

_Honestly, why Hermione, though? It's not as if I know her better than any of the other girls, and if it was on the topic of romance, I'd probably trust Parvati and Lavender more…_

…_wait, this isn't about romance! Lavi's misconception__ is the topic!_

At any rate, her secrets were safe for the moment. Lenalee breathed a sigh of relief, which went unnoticed by Allen. The younger boy was now on his second portion of breakfast; it would have been his third by now had there been no interruption.

The pair were about halfway through breakfast when Hermione and her pair of friends departed the hall for their first classes. Lenalee couldn't help but notice that her classmate gave Allen another thoughtful look before the boys dragged her out of the room. Had the girl no notion of who might be watching?!

Indeed, the look did not go unnoticed by other Gryffindor students. Fortunately, the one who did notice was oblivious as to its true meaning… and, fortunately, any romantic ones, too.

"Say, Allen…" Sean cocked his head thoughtfully. "That scar of yours…"

How Allen had gone without ever saying a thing about it until now was a mystery to Lenalee.

"…you didn't, you know…" The brown-haired boy paused, apparently trying to think of a way to prevent causing offence. "Well, you know how Harry Potter got it and all…"

"Um…" Allen gave Lenalee a curious look, then shrugged. "I still don't know who that is."

Allen's dorm-mates exchanged incredulous glances. "Even after all this time…?"

"He's that black-haired boy in some of my classes," Lenalee explained. "He was with Hermione this morning."

"Oh." Allen nodded. "The one Slughorn is always talking about in Potions."

Somehow, this failed to satisfy the other fifth-year boys.

"But… you've seen his scar, right?" Albert prompted. "_The_ scar? The famous one?"

Allen shook his head; Lenalee paused to think for a moment before answering. "Is that what it was?" she asked. "I never really paid much attention to it."

"I suppose you wouldn't, with a friend like Allen," Sean muttered, grinning.

Albert remained unconvinced. "You really don't know? Even now?"

A stray memory drifted into Allen's mind. "You said something about him being… a boy… boy who lived in…"

"The Boy Who Lived," Will corrected. "He's like a celebrity around here."

"For living?" Allen asked. "Isn't that…"

"Normal?" Lenalee finished. "Unless you're referring to the scar?"

The other four boys nodded in unison. "That scar."

"…I'll be sure to ask about it later, then," Lenalee murmured. "Although I don't see why a scar would make someone famous."

"Or living," Allen added. "Although it's a good thing, really."

Albert rolled his eyes. "It's because he escaped from _You-Know-Who_."

Lenalee and Allen exchanged glances. "…Pardon, who?" Allen asked hesitantly.

"You-Know-Who. The most evil magician of our lifetime – no, maybe in the history of magic," Sean murmured in a low tone of voice. "He killed tons of people a generation ago… thanks to Harry Potter, he was stopped fifteen years ago."

"But he's been back since third year," Will muttered. "His followers have all returned, too, except you don't know who most of them are; they pretend to be normal people. That's why things are so bad right now."

"Why Zonko's is closed." Chester scowled at the thought.

"A dark magician…," Lenalee repeated. _He must be the cause of the war that the Minister mentioned. And followers…_

"It's just like the Millennium Earl, isn't it," Allen said softly, too low for anyone but Lenalee to hear. "

"Things really haven't changed, have they," Lenalee answered. Allen reached under the table to take her hand, squeezing it lightly; Lenalee gave him a soft smile in response.

"Anyway…" Will chewed a piece of toast thoughtfully. "You'd probably be better off asking some adult about it… maybe Potter himself, too. There's been some weird stuff happening in the past few years, and this kinda thing would be easier to explain if it happened to you…"

"So about how you got _your_ scar-" Albert started, only to be interrupted by a sudden flurry of students standing up from the table. "It's time for class already?"

"Yeah… guess this'll have to wait for another time, huh?" Sean shrugged and grinned. "Allen's not in Charms with us."

"Right." Allen laughed nervously. "I'll see you later, all right?"

Albert gave him a look that told the Exorcist that the other boy hadn't forgotten, and wouldn't forget to ask later in the day. The four other fifth-years left the Hall, leaving Allen and Lenalee behind.

"Allen-kun…" Lenalee slowly removed her hand from under his and stood up. "What are you going to tell them when they ask?"

Allen shrugged. "The truth, probably." He smiled up at Lenalee. "It isn't that bad, right? That I got this when my father died…"

"Are you going to tell them it's a curse?"

Allen was silent for a moment. "I don't know," he finally said. "I'll… have to think about that, won't I."

Their trip back to the dormitory was in silence.

* * *

Strangely enough, it was not Albert who was the next to confront Allen about his scar, but another Gryffindor boy, during lunch, before Lenalee and Lavi had arrived in the Hall. Allen was just about to take a bite of a tasty chicken-and-lettuce sandwich when he noticed a strange presence at his shoulder. With a frown, he dropped the sandwich – and it had looked so delicious, too! – and looked behind him to see a dark-haired boy a little older than he was. A few moments of memory-racking revealed him to be one of that strange girl from breakfast's – Hermione's? – companions. Allen glanced around quickly; he seemed to be alone. What did this person want?

"Hi," Allen said awkwardly.

The other boy said nothing and stared at Allen's face – or rather, just above his eyes.

_Oh no,_ Allen thought, _it's _that_, isn't it._

"Is something wrong?" he asked hesitantly.

"That scar…," the dark-haired boy murmured. _Ah,_ Allen thought, _it really was that, after all. _"It's… strange, isn't it."

"Yeah," Allen responded, feeling anxious to get back to his sandwich. Had it not been during lunch – or any other time when Allen was eating – he would certainly have been more polite, and asked for the boy's name, and perhaps how he was doing, and almost certainly why he was staring at Allen like the pentacle on his forehead held some kind of backwards message that took some concentration to decipher. As it was, Allen couldn't really think about anything other than the sandwich.

"…Where'd you get it?"

"Accident." Allen's left hand slunk inconspicuously towards the sandwich, the material of the glove muffling any sound it may have made.

"What kind?"

Allen gave him a suspicious look. "Again, is something wrong?"

"_Your scar_. It wasn't the result of… a _curse_ or anything, was it?"

And there went Allen's appetite. "You..." Unbeknownst to Allen, he currently sounded as if he was desperately trying – and failing – to hide a secret. Which was, of course, exactly what he was doing. "Why would you say that?" he asked, attempting to sound nonchalant. Had this boy figured out his secret? Did that mean that he knew that Allen, and Lenalee and Lavi too, were…

"People have been talking about it," the boy told him, sliding into the seat next to Allen's. "I heard from a fifth-year…"

_Damn that Albert_, Allen thought. Really, it could have been any of the four boys, but it sounded like something Albert would do.

"…and of course, anyone would be curious," he continued. From the way he muttered it, in a quick, low tone, Allen wondered if he was trying to hide a personal interest.

"Right," Allen said slowly. "So why do you think it's… a curse?"

The boy's eyes widened briefly; Allen's question apparently caught him off-guard. "Well… you know, because of my situation-"

Situation, situation… what made this boy so special? "You're…"

"Yeah… Harry-"

"Oh!" Allen nearly jumped out of his seat. "Harry Potter. Lenalee told me your name earlier; I just didn't remember until now. Sorry."

"So that's why-"

"No… wait, hang on a moment," Allen interrupted, giving Harry an apologetic look, "what were they saying about you this morning…" Ignoring the now-worried look of the sixth-year, Allen desperately tried to remember. "You… you're famous, right? You escaped from some evil person and- oh, right, they said something about a scar!" he exclaimed. "Is that why you're asking?"

"Thank goodness it's just that," Harry muttered, grinning to himself, and almost looking… relieved? "Yes, that's why."

"Oh." Lenalee's question from earlier had come back to him, too. Did he really want everyone knowing about his scar – how it had come to exist, and its effects? Then again, if this boy had had a similar experience… "Yes, it's… definitely a curse."

"Then… you survived it, too?" Was it just Allen, or was there a sort of disappointment in Harry's green eyes? "Something that no one had ever survived before?"

"You could say that," Allen murmured. The answer was really a 'yes', but then, if questioned further, he'd have to explain about akuma… and that was definitely a secret the Exorcists had to keep among themselves.

"So I'm not the only one," Harry breathed, leaning back for a moment and looking incredulous. "Was it a parent's love for you, too?"

"Uh… I'm not really sure. It could be. I never really thought about it, actually," Allen confessed.

"And it… doesn't burn, does it? Whenever the one who did it comes close?"

What? "That isn't really possible," Allen said softly. "He's dead."

"Oh…"

"…but it… _reacts_…," Allen admitted, "whenever some…_one_… similar? When someone similar is nearby."

"I wonder what they'd say," Harry mused, sounding slightly disappointed (although Allen was sure he was unaware of that). "Knowing that there are two of us… two who survived the spell that's supposed to kill anything that it's cast upon-"

"Wait," Allen interrupted again, making a gesture with his hand to silence the other boy. "A spell?"

Again, Harry blinked in surprise. "Yes. Isn't that what-"

"…not exactly." Allen shook his head. "Why would you think that?"

"That's what happened to _me_, isn't it? I assumed…"

Which reminded Allen: he still had no idea what the other fifth-years had been talking about when they mentioned Harry Potter. Lenalee had said she would find out later that day, in Potions, but she hadn't showed up for lunch yet. Perhaps now would be a good time to ask?

"Ah… is it all right to ask what _did_ happen to you?" Allen asked hesitantly. "Since everyone seems to know…"

Harry shrugged – "I should warn you, though, I don't really remember any of this myself. It's what I've learned from others" - and proceeded to tell a brief outline of the events that had occurred fifteen years ago. "It isn't as if I remember it, though," he hastened to add. "And… I'm not _proud_ of it or anything! Some… some people think…"

"I don't see why," Allen said sympathetically. "Having… such a thing happen isn't something one would go around bragging about, is it?"

"I just thought that since you've got one too and all, maybe…"

So that had been it? It was still curiosity, but somehow, in Allen's mind, relating it to one's own situation was a much more appropriate reason for it than to gawk at him as if he were a circus attraction.

…well, he _had_ been that, but at least he had some self-respect as a clown!

"It's understandable," Allen told him. "Your story… much worse than mine, though." Those were not words Allen spoke often, not after being the disciple of Cross for three years. Of course, if he were ever to compare childhoods with Lenalee, there was no question who was worse off; Allen, at least, had had a loving parent for most of his life, and that was without thinking about Lenalee's life at the Order. When it came to the current situation, though…

"It is?" Since Harry didn't sound particularly curious about Allen's life, and that sandwich had caught the eye of the Exorcist again, Allen didn't bother to relate his life story. Instead, he had one last thing to say:

"…but it must be nice to be able to live without getting stares from everyone on the street, right?" It was said in a cheerful tone, but somehow, any observer might have believed that this was almost a kind of competition. Each boy had to be in a worse position!

…the sandwich…

"Hmm…" Harry mused thoughtfully. There was a slight pause, in which Allen's hand inched towards the once-forgotten sandwich, before the older boy had one last thing to say. "You know, your scar kind of looks like a lightning bolt, too."

"Does it?" Allen's hand slunk back under the table. "…'too'?"

Harry brushed his bangs aside briefly so Allen could see the famous scar.

_It's _that? the younger boy couldn't help but think. _It's completely hidden by his hair, that small thing, and… it's a big deal?_ Allen had learned from experience what an excellent cover hair could be. If the pentacle on his forehead was as visible as the rest of his scar…

"Ah. That really does look like a lightning bolt," Allen commented.

"It does, doesn't it."

"I always thought mine looked more like a cross-shape, though." Cross… the word alone was enough to make him feel ill. A quick glance at the delicious-looking sandwich fixed that, though.

"Now that you mention it…" The other boy peered at Allen's scar. "It-"

"Allen-kun, you haven't eaten your lunch yet? Oh, hi, Harry."

Allen spun around; Lenalee had appeared behind him and was sitting down next to him. She gave her classmate a quick wave; it was returned. "Lenalee?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt your discussion," she said, placing her bag on the table in front of her, "but… well, I was just so surprised…"

"It's all right, Lenalee. We were finished, anyway," Harry told her, standing up with a faint smile. "Good luck with that Potions homework… uh…"

"You too," she responded cheerfully. As the dark-haired boy slipped past to join his friends at the other end of the table, Lenalee gave Allen a worried look. "What did Harry have to say to you? Was it about…"

"You asked him, then?" Allen nodded. "Since it was…"

"About your scar, then," she murmured. "You seemed a little thoughtful; are you sure I didn't interrupt-"

"No, nothing at all," he told her earnestly. "Actually, I was getting hungry, and I wasn't sure how to end the conversation, so it was a good thing that you arrived right then."

"Is it?" She smiled at him, then turned to her own lunch. "But Allen-kun, if you ever need to talk to someone…"

"I know," he said softly. "He was just curious about it, though, since he's got a scar, too. Since I couldn't talk about… certain things, there really wasn't much to say."

"And you're not thinking about…"

"I'm not thinking of it, no."

"…Cross?"

Allen's face went green. Lenalee quickly picked up his sandwich with one hand and shoved it in his face.

"I'm sorry, Allen-kun! …Eat this, okay?"

The sandwich was as good as it had looked.

* * *

The interruption at lunch had made him late for his next class, yet fate would not allow Allen to find his way there without another strange encounter. In his scramble to avoid a scolding from Professor Sprout, he failed to notice the girl in his pathway, and, well, it ended with his supplies on the ground and the girl on her behind.

"Sorry! I'm so sorry!" Allen hastily apologized, attempting to shovel his books back into the deflated bag. "Um… I was really in a hurry, so…"

"It's fine," she muttered, passing him his pair of gloves, but pausing once she noticed his face. "You…"

"Me?" Allen took the gloves gratefully. "I'm sorry?" he repeated.

"Your scar…"

_This again?_ Allen barely contained an exasperated sigh. She was unfamiliar to him – a few years older, it seemed, and she looked a bit familiar… a little like one of the scientists from the Asia branch? A descendant, maybe?

Now was not the time to be worrying about this! "I'm terribly sorry," he said for a fourth time, scrambling to his feet. "Are you all right?" It was a bit belated, but…

She nodded. "Just get to your class."

Had Allen bothered to look back, or even had he paid more attention to their brief exchange, he would have noticed the strange look on her face, the stiff tone of her voice. As it was, he didn't, and it didn't particularly matter anyway.

Besides, the scar Mana had given him had attracted enough attention today.

* * *

It had been a slightly more intense day for Allen than usual since he had come to the future, and by the time he'd finished his homework for the day, he wanted nothing more than to settle down in bed and fall fast asleep. It was one a.m., and the common room had emptied out long ago.

All except for Lenalee, that is. It was her presence that made Allen pause at the stairs to the boys' dorms and turn around to ask her why she hadn't gone to sleep yet. The table in front of her was covered in open books piled on top of one another, but Lenalee couldn't still be working on her homework! Even though she'd helped Allen with his own, he'd seen her give a sigh of relief and pack away her textbooks and the scrolls covered in her neat handwriting hours earlier. What could be keeping her up now?

"It's nothing, Allen-kun," she told him with a smile before going back to her books, although he sensed the weariness in her voice. Worried, he gave one longing glance at the stairs before turning around and sitting next to her, touching her arm gently to get her attention again.

"Are you really all right? You…" He hesitated at her raised eyebrow. "Have you been getting enough sleep?"

"Like we get so much of it at the Order," she murmured wryly. "We're always on call, just in case…"

"But you can afford to sleep here, right?" Sleep, Allen had discovered (back at the Order, however), was a wonderful activity. Not as enjoyable as eating, but if Komui's potions weren't lying around to cause havoc… "Besides, didn't you finish your homework hours ago? What are you studying now?"

"It's _nothing_," she repeated quickly. When Allen tried to take a peek at the topmost book, she flicked it off the table nonchalantly. He turned to her, confused.

"Are you hiding something, Lenalee?"

"Allen-kun… I'm fine, really. You're absolutely right; I need to get more sleep." Lenalee hopped up from her seat and quickly began to gather the books and scrolls scattered across the table, including the one that had fallen. "Good night."

It was very tempting to leave it at that and go to sleep, but Allen's concern for Lenalee, and his curiosity at what she was hiding – he wasn't _that_ gullible! Not after knowing Lenalee for more than half a year! – overrode his desire for relaxation. One of his closest friends was involved in something that was evidently endangering her health! At the very least, he was a companion in battle, and a _man, _so wasn't it only right that he do something to protect her? Somehow?

"Wait!" Lenalee glanced over her shoulder, and he leaned forward to grab her wrist, pulling her up into a half-standing position. Bemused, she sat down in her original seat, wrist still captured in his gloved hand. "You _are_ hiding something, aren't you?"

"There's nothing to worry about, Allen-kun, I'm-"

"Don't you always hate it when I'm secretive about things?" he interrupted. Lenalee blinked in surprise and shut her mouth at his question. "When we were in China, and you were worried about my arm, or in the Ark when I was planning to stay back and wait for everyone… you noticed, and you were upset that I didn't tell you, right?"

Lenalee nodded slowly.

"But it's not like you to hide things," Allen continued. "When you had those nightmares, and you couldn't find me…"

"That was different," she muttered. "I was worried about you back then. Y-you and everyone else, of course."

Allen gave a relieved sigh; at least whatever she was hiding had nothing to do with the fate of the world. But then, why should it? They weren't actively working as Exorcists anymore; right now, Lenalee – and Lavi, and Allen himself – were just three human students at a magical school. They had to protect their identities, not each other, or even other humans. Fighting wasn't their responsibility for the time being.

It scared him. Ever since Mana's death, his reason for living was to fight, to protect humans and akuma from the fate that the Earl planned for them. He didn't really know how to be a regular student at a school; for that matter, he hadn't ever been to a school in the first place.

"Then…" Lenalee gave him a guilty look. When he reached into her bag to pull out one of the books she had been studying, a scroll neatly tucked into the pages like a bookmark, her cheeks flushed a deep red. With one hand, he flipped the book open to a random page to read.

"Give it back." Lenalee scowled petulantly; it was too late for her protests to matter. After a few seconds, Allen turned to her, wide-eyed.

"Lenalee, isn't this…"

"_A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_," Lenalee answered without looking at the textbook. "A textbook used by first-years in the Transfiguration class."

"But why would you have it?" Allen asked. "You're not a first-year!"

"We've got the more advanced copies," she reminded him. "I picked this up in the shop when David wasn't looking, though. Earlier copies of everything, actually. They weren't that expensive; the shopkeeper gave me a strange look, but-"

"More importantly," Allen muttered, a sudden realization coming upon him, "why are you reading it?"

Lenalee looked down at her lap, embarrassed. After a long pause, she told him the truth. Allen was, after all, one of her closest friends… and he'd understand, right?

"Because I want to learn magic."

The grip on her wrist loosened. Allen's eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of his face.

"But… we can't…," he stammered. "Lenalee, we're-"

"I can try, at least, can't I, Allen-kun?" When she turned her eyes up to meet his, Allen was taken aback by the sadness he saw in them. Lenalee's violet eyes had been filled with sadness many times before that he'd seen – and many times that he hadn't, and always more times and to a greater degree than they ever should be – but this sadness conveyed not merely that but a deep pain and a powerful feeling of loneliness. "It may be difficult," she added, her voice openly showing none of what her eyes did, "but it probably isn't impossible – I was in the Order when I was eleven; they couldn't have found me there – you remember when I held the wand, there were sparks – and if anyone can do it-"

"Lenalee," he interrupted, "you don't need to make excuses."

"I'm _not_-"

He gave her a pleading look and again, she was silenced. "You don't need to suppress your feelings," he murmured sadly. "I-if you're in pain…"

"Only if you don't, either, Allen-kun." Her voice was eerily calm, and he couldn't help but be surprised. "You're like that too, you know."

_But I'm not the one hiding-_

And suddenly, her arms were wrapped around his shoulders, her face was buried in his cheek, and he couldn't remember what he had been thinking just moments before. Lenalee was so warm…

"You never tell us what you're thinking, Allen-kun," she whispered into his ear. A dampness formed where her face met his; was she crying? "Even when something's wrong, you smile and pretend that everything's all right, just like you did in the Ark."

"You noticed anyway," he muttered wryly, placing his hands awkwardly on her back. Even though they'd been this close twice before, he hadn't yet become used to the feeling of… well, of her chest, to be honest. Allen was, after all, an adolescent male. Fortunately, he'd managed to keep his face from becoming warm, or else she'd definitely become aware of his embarrassment.

"There's so much more you haven't told m-us, though." She shifted closer, and Allen barely suppressed a squeak. Sure, there had been hugs before, but three times he'd kept a nice space between them, and the other two times, well, they hadn't been in a sitting position! She was almost sitting on top of his legs now!

Which really was uncomfortable; Lenalee wasn't heavy, but the unequal distribution of pressure…

"You know you can trust us, right, Allen-kun?" When he didn't answer, she pulled back slightly and turned his head to face her. "Aren't we friends? Aren't we _comrades_?"

"Yeah…," Allen murmured, refusing to meet her stern gaze. They were, weren't they? And Lenalee certainly felt comfortable with telling him about (_most_ of) her problems… he felt terrible for not trusting her with his own. Yet somehow, he just couldn't talk to her about some things – about the song, how he could hear it, and Mana's role in it all that he _knew_, and yet couldn't make himself accept. Was it because he was worried that she'd condemn him for it, even though he was almost sure that she'd accept him no matter what he was, who his father was, because he was a friend?

Or did he fear being told something that he refused to believe even when he unconsciously knew the truth?

"I know, Lenalee."

It wasn't a matter of trust. He knew he could trust Lenalee, and Lavi, and everyone else in the Order (even Komui and Kanda). There were other reasons.

Most important of all, he didn't want to be a burden to them.

As if she could read his mind, Lenalee asked him as much. He shook his head at the question, a little too quickly; she was unconvinced.

"You're nothing like that, Allen-kun." Her arms tightened around him. "You'll never be a burden to me, or to anyone else. Don't you know that?"

"Everyone else has more important things to worry about," he told her, although he unconsciously pulled her just a little closer. On some level, he knew she was right. "Don't worry about me; I'll be fine."

"But when you say that, I- I mean, _we_ worry about you even more! Allen-kun…" Lenalee leaned in, close enough for their noses to touch; Allen hoped that with her eyes focused on his, she didn't notice his blush. (Again? He really needed to control his hormones; this was a serious conversation, wasn't it?!) "Don't feel afraid to rely on us sometimes. We care for you, after all."

"Okay…" As soon as the words slipped past his lips, Lenalee gave a satisfied nod and pulled back to settle her head on his shoulder again. It was an awkward position, and would be even if they had been standing – Lenalee was as tall as he was – but Allen found it strangely comforting. As long as he wasn't the only one who needed someone to, well, lean on at times… if Lenalee trusted him, too, and wasn't uncomfortable with relying on him…

His gaze suddenly fell on the neglected Transfiguration textbook.

"Hey, Lenalee… you never told me… why _are_ you trying to study magic?"

Lenalee stiffened. Allen raised an eyebrow at her, although he knew she couldn't see it.

"If I'm going to trust you…," he reminded her in a soft voice. "Lenalee, you…"

"I didn't want to remind you," she murmured into his neck, her lips feeling ticklish on his skin. "I still don't. If I say anything…"

"It's all right," he said reassuringly. "If you'll feel better after talking to someone…"

Lenalee turned her head to face him, still on an awkward angle. "Allen-kun, I don't want you to-" She cut off at seeing his sceptical look. "If you insist," she muttered, breaking the eye contact. "It's… I just can't stop thinking of home."

"Home?" He should have expected this. Didn't he know how important everyone's presence was to Lenalee?

"I know I said I'd be strong, back on that first night here, but…" A tear slipped down her face, and she didn't seem to notice it. "You and Lavi have always been there when I feel particularly lonely, but… I miss my brother. I miss Kanda, and Miranda, and Mari, and Reever, and everyone else. No matter how much I try to think of other things – that they're okay, that we'll go home soon, and see everyone again, and things will go back to normal – it hasn't happened yet."

"We will…"

"I know, Allen-kun…" The tears were flowing freely now. "But no matter how much I try to think of other things, to distract myself with trying to learn magic, the thoughts are always there. I miss _nii-san_…"

"But you've been separated for longer periods of time, right?" Allen reminded her. "Like when we went to Japan to look for Master… that was longer than a few weeks, right?"

"At least I could talk to him. I can't even let him know I'm all right… he must be so worried…"

"Maybe when we get back, we'll find that no time passed at all." He forced himself to smile at the thought. "Komui-san won't ever know you've been gone."

"I'll know."

Allen wasn't sure what to say after that. He settled on telling her, in a gentle tone, "We'll always be here for you when you need us."

"Thank you, Allen-kun. Please… please don't leave me." The last sentence was almost a gasp; Lenalee flung herself closer to him after that. It felt like an eternity to both of them while Lenalee cried and Allen merely sat there and held her, wishing he could do more, and hating himself for failing to realize how much pain Lenalee had been feeling all this time. He hadn't noticed, and he couldn't do anything to help her now, except to be there. It almost made him wish he hadn't promised to rely on her earlier; how could Lenalee bear even the weight she had now, much less his own?

So he would be there for her. After all, he couldn't do anything for the world right now but protect Lenalee.

* * *

Not being a professor himself, Lavi was afforded time to answer the calls of nature between History of Magic classes. Normally, such, er, trips were uneventful, but the day after Allen's scar became the topic of conversation among some Gryffindors, Lavi had an unusual encounter.

He'd been casually making his way back to the classroom, having some time to spare before the class began, when he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. His green eye widened with surprise.

_A pretty girl!_

She was probably not much younger than him – a seventh-year? – and Asian… probably Chinese, unless he hadn't been exposed to enough cultures in the Order. The combination immediately made him think of Lenalee, although there was very little similarity in physical appearance besides attractiveness. Lavi being Lavi, he decided to do something about this fateful encounter. After all, didn't girls find the forbidden to be terribly attractive?

"Well _hello_ there," he began, putting on his most flirtatious grin. "And who might-"

She cut him off before he had a chance to finish his question. "My last boyfriend died while I was dating him." With a sideways look that wasn't nearly as friendly as Lavi's leer, she quickly made her way down the hall in the opposite direction.

Lavi frowned. "Now that was cold." Oh well. There were plenty of other seventh-year girls in the school anyway.

* * *

Well, it's the longest chapter yet, and it didn't even take me eight months this time. Just two.

This was a difficult chapter to write, because it was BORING. The last (real) scene was, strangely enough, the easiest, probably because I could cite examples of Allen and Lenalee behaving that way in the manga. However, I didn't do so in an earlier chapter… so you might notice a lack of consistency there. Still, improvement is good, right? Anyway, hope that explains a bit about what Lenalee's been thinking about and why she behaves the way she does.

To answer a questions before it pops up: Scene-changer random girl will not play a role in the story except possibly as a single reference back to this chapter later in the story. Maybe. You should be able to figure out who she is…

The next chapter will have way more plot _and_ probably some romance, too: It's the first Quidditch match of the year. You'll find out what happened to Timcanpy, and Allen (and the other two, but mostly Allen) will react to all that crazy snogging going on everywhere. Next up, though: Clownfish chapter 2.


	7. Scroll 7

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: People still use this, right? This isn't just an outdated thing from the Inuyasha fandom four years ago?

Sorry for the ridiculous amount of flirtation in this chapter. Lavi is present, so…

* * *

Scroll Seven: The Snitch With Fangs

Allen had a secret.

A _very special_ secret, one that no one – perhaps not even Lenalee or Lavi – knew about.

He'd been keeping it for a while now… a few weeks, ever since he arrived in modern-day England.

That secret was the reason he had flattened himself against the wall just moments earlier, robes bulging with something mysterious, and attempting to look inconspicuous as cheerful, animated students engaged in rapid conversation walked by him. In their distraction, they failed to notice him.

Once the coast was clear, Allen made a dash for the painting. The password was spoken; the Fat Lady moved; Allen scrambled into the common room and prayed that no one would be there.

God was on his side (for he _was _an Exorcist). A single seventh-year lay sprawled in a chair, fast asleep, but most students had headed to their next classes already. Allen didn't have one after lunch on Fridays, and it allowed him more freedom on those days to perform this daily ritual. During the rest of the week, he was forced to wait until after everyone had fallen asleep.

His room was empty. Excellent.

Closing the door behind him after one last careful glance into the hall, Allen fell to his knees and removed a number of parcels from under his robes. As one hand sorted them into a rough pile and tugged the paper away, his other reached out to open the luggage containing extra clothes and the like.

And slowly, silently, something emerged from under his pyjamas.

It spotted the parcels.

Allen nodded.

The thing grinned in return, showing a set of very large, sharp teeth, and proceeded to dispose of the burden. Which was, in actuality, leftovers from Allen's lunch a few minutes ago.

Allen would never learn why Timcanpy defied the laws of golemhood and ate (or pretended to, at least, but if it wasn't real, what happened to the food? Allen had never found chewed-up bits of bread around his bed), but until then, he fed it at least once a day.

"Happy, Tim?" he asked, leaning back on his hands while he watched the golem devour what had been a bacon sandwich.

Timcanpy burped in return. (Another unsolved mystery of the universe, along with Johnny's immortality and what the hell was 65, anyway.)

"That's good." Allen reached under the folds of clothing that also served as Timcanpy's hiding place to pull out a book. At times like this, with his roommates busy in classes, he enjoyed his old friend's company. "Sorry I can't let you out more, but…"

Timcanpy fluttered over to his knee and settled there, a sign of affection to show that it held no hard feelings against Allen for it. It had been settled in Allen's sleeve throughout the London adventures (apparently, David the spider was even more terrifying when you were all of eight centimetres in circumference), and Allen had hid Tim in his luggage at the first opportunity he got. It wasn't that Timcanpy would cause trouble (most of the time – maybe if one was fond of curtains…), but Allen really wasn't prepared to answer questions about his master's golem that he couldn't answer. Perhaps if they had golems in this time… but until he saw one, he couldn't be too careful.

With a content sigh, Allen settled against the wall, book propped up against his knees. Timcanpy fluttered away to enjoy a rare moment of freedom and stretch its wings. As the golem made not a sound when zooming around the room as it pleased (assuming it had the co-ordination to avoid solid objects), the room was completely silent except for the sound of pages turning and Allen's slow breathing. Gryffindor Tower had been full of tension in the past few days; when he'd asked the reason, his roommates had told him that it was nothing, just quid-something (Allen wondered if someone had lent money to another, and hadn't received it back; or was it money lost in gambling?), yet they'd looked worried all the same. Ginny Weasley in particular had looked the worst, as Will had pointed out, but Allen decided he had his own monetary problems to worry about.

So he was determined to enjoy this peace and quiet for once.

…but then his eyes fell upon a reference to a book that he didn't have. Shouldn't have.

One that Lenalee did.

_Please don't leave me._

The silence made it all the more easier to bring back memories of that night.

_I can try, at least, can't I, Allen-kun?_

Why? It was a rhetorical question now; she'd told him the reason already.

_I just can't stop thinking of home._

It worried him. It shouldn't have – he was just a friend, a comrade; why should it matter to him if Lenalee found something to occupy her mind with to distract herself from what she didn't have? – yet all the same, Allen wished she'd stay away from it. After all, what use would they have for magic back at the Order? Lenalee was an Exorcist; she didn't need anything like-

No, that definitely wasn't it. No matter how he looked at it, magic would be _useful_. So if that wasn't why he felt such an aversion to her new hobby…

_I can try_-

What would he-_they_ do if she liked it too much? If she wanted to keep learning magic?

Would she be able to learn from Cross and Johnny? _If she did, would Lavi and I ever remember being here with her?_ No, Lenalee wouldn't want them to forget about the time spent together with her. Would she go off to the Hogwarts of their time to continue learning? Or stay here, a hundred years in the future, in a time when Allen would have grown old and died long ago?

Even if she stayed in the Order, would it be the same as before? She'd be a witch, and Allen, just an ordinary Muggle. Lenalee would never treat him, or any other human, with disrespect because of it, of course, but that would always be a barrier he'd never be able to overcome. It wasn't like race, or age, or different kinds of Innocence. He'd be missing something she had. Why would she want…

…but now Allen's thoughts were turning in a direction he definitely wasn't sure of. It was time to forget about Lenalee's problems for the time being and focus on the book.

Before he could continue, though, one last thought crossed his mind.

_If it doesn't work out, Lenalee will be disappointed. _

Allen wouldn't be able to comfort her at all.

* * *

The next morning, Allen awoke to an empty dormitory and an equally empty stomach. He rolled out of bed, nearly squashing Timcanpy in the process – the golem had been lurking under the bed since the day before – and glanced at the clock hanging above the door. It wasn't very late for a Saturday morning… had he slept all weekend? Or merely forgotten what day of the week it was?

He certainly hoped that wasn't the case.

With a muttered curse, Allen dashed down the stairs to the common room; there was not a student to be seen. The same couldn't be said of animals, however. As Allen absentmindedly scratched the ears of a large ginger-coloured cat that had found its way under his gloved hand (it gave Timcanpy a devious look, which sent the golem flying to the ceiling), he wondered where everyone could be. Even during school hours, there was always a person or two in the common room. What was going on?

"Mmh…" The sleepy sound made Allen jump; it turned out to be a half-awake Lenalee who had just emerged from the girls' dorms. "'Morning, Allen-kun."

"Good morning, Lenalee," he responded cheerfully.

"Nice day, isn't it…" Lenalee frowned. "Where is everyone?"

Allen shrugged. Something began to paw at his wrist, and Allen realized he'd stopped paying attention to the cat at Lenalee's arrival. He resumed the scratching. "I haven't seen anyone this morning, or heard any voices. I thought it might have been a weekday until…" He nodded to the empty space around them. "Is it some kind of holiday we weren't told about?"

"One where everyone suddenly disappears without a trace?" Lenalee couldn't help but giggle at that. "Let's just go to breakfast, Allen-kun. Maybe everyone's in the Great Hall."

"For the holiday?" he joked, an innocent look on his face.

"Yeah, that's where the magical door to nowhere is opened… oh, cute cat," Lenalee added. The cat bounced away to rub itself against her legs briefly before sneaking back where Lenalee had come from. "He looks familiar," she muttered as they watched him go.

"Does he belong to one of the other students? Maybe you've seen him in the halls…"

"I don't think Timcanpy likes him very much, though." Lenalee glanced upward; a nervous Timcanpy had settled on her head. "Although I'd be afraid of something that likes to eat me, too."

At the mention of eating, Allen's stomach rumbled. Embarrassed, he muttered, "So how about breakfast, then…"

Lenalee nodded and led the way to the Great Hall…

…where they discovered that Allen may have been right about the holiday after all. The pair stood at the doors, stunned at the appearance of the Gryffindor table, and occasionally exchanging a look of disbelief. They hadn't moved five minutes later, when Lavi noticed them from the teachers' table and got up to greet his friends.

"Why are you just standing there?" he asked bluntly, then suddenly adopted a look of fake terror. "Allen… are you sick?! You're not hungry?!"

"It's not that…," Allen muttered weakly. "We're not exactly…"

Lenalee nodded towards the table. "We weren't informed of a dress code."

Lavi glanced over his shoulder to see what they were referring to. "What, that? …You two hadn't heard about it?"

"Heard about what?" the other Exorcists asked in unison.

"It's the first Quidditch match of the season!" When Lenalee and Allen's blank looks persisted, he rolled his eye at them. "Don't tell me that after _all this time_…"

"Like you'd heard of it before a few weeks ago," Allen murmured under his breath.

"…no one ever told you about it? _Really_?"

Lenalee shook her head. "The girls have been more concerned about boys recently-" Lavi smirked, and Lenalee gave his ankle a kick; was he still thinking about her 'discussion' with Hermione?! "-and anyway," she continued, now a bit embarrassed, "I've been… busy lately."

"With that?" Allen asked quietly. Lenalee answered with a hint of a nod, making Lavi more than a bit suspicious. Lenalee and Allen were sharing a secret? Could it be that his joke about the pair wasn't really one after all?

"Oh! Quidditch!" And Allen had only needed a few minutes to recall even hearing the word in the first place. "The other fifth-year boys said something about it – why everyone's been so tense recently."

"So that was why," Lenalee said thoughtfully. "If it's a kind of celebration… it can be very frustrating to plan such a thing, after all. Everyone looks excited now, though, so it must have worked out in the end."

"Perhaps they had budgeting problems," Allen suggested. Lavi smacked his forehead into the palm of his hand.

"_Quidditch_, Allen. It's a sport, not a party. Like basketball, only on broomsticks, or so I've been told."

There was a long pause before Allen burst out, wide-eyed, "They _really_ ride broomsticks here?!"

Fortunately, the students were making enough noise that Allen's exclamation went unnoticed by everyone except the two humiliated friends and one or two curious Ravenclaw second-years that went back to their breakfasts after a puzzled glance.

"Allen-kun," Lenalee whispered in a tone a bit harsher than she intended, "yes, some of the stereotypes are actually true."

"So they really wear pointy hats, and keep black cats as pets, and use lizards and newts in their potions-"

"Did you forget what your Potions assignment last week was, Allen-kun?"

"-and… oh." Allen blinked nervously. "The one with…"

"…so anyway," Lavi interrupted cheerfully, "the first match of the year is today. Gryffindor versus Slytherin. That's why everyone's wearing those scarves and all; it's for their team. See? Slytherin's wearing their colours, too."

"Thank you for informing us about the situation, Lavi," Lenalee told him, "but unfortunately, we'd still feel embarrassed about eating in there without..."

"So how do we get them?" Allen asked quickly. As if sensing an appropriate time to add to the conversation, his stomach growled.

"That…" Lavi looked into the Hall again and shrugged. "I can't answer that. Want to eat out here, though? I'm sure the professors won't mind if I grab a few plates for you…" With a glance at Allen, he added, "Though I can't promise you'll be full after this."

"Thank you, Lavi, but…" Allen spared a look at the Gryffindor table again. "Lenalee, do you think you would be all right with…"

"Even if it's embarrassing, Allen-kun?" Allen looked at her pleadingly; Lenalee threw up her hands and gave an exasperated sigh. "I suppose if we're new…"

"Great! I knew you two would come to your senses." Lavi clapped a hand on each of their backs and led them into the Hall. "Just tell them our old school wasn't so fond of sports or somethin'. Or that you're from a Muggle family; Gryffindors mostly don't care about that, right?"

"They already think that," Allen told him.

"Excellent."

"…so it's a sport for the magical, then?"

The other Exorcists gave Allen a strange look. "The broomsticks, Allen-kun?" Lenalee said slowly. "You didn't…"

"I thought maybe it was just their own twist on the game!" Allen said defensively. "What if I told the others I didn't know what it was because I was raised with Muggles and accidentally revealed our secret because it's a thing of this time?"

"Of course," Lenalee muttered, flushing in embarrassment. She evidently hadn't thought of it herself. "Let's go eat breakfast, all right? Allen-kun, you must be starving!"

Allen nodded enthusiastically, and Lavi dragged the two into the Hall.

Fortunately, no one looked askance at the undecorated Exorcists. By the time Allen and Lenalee sat down at the end of the Gryffindor table, a few students had already finished and begun to leave. The rest were engaged in excited chatter about today's match.

"Looks like we'll have to eat quickly," Lenalee murmured sadly.

"Don't worry," Allen assured her. "Ten minutes will be enough."

"For myself!" Lenalee smacked him playfully with a rolled-up napkin. "I remember! It was only your second day at the Order, and yet…"

"My first taste of Jeryy's cooking." Allen smiled softly at the fond memories. "The lasagna… the beef stew… the corn… the mitarashi dango…"

"Allen-kun, stop reminiscing and eat! Everyone's leaving!"

"Right, right!" Allen grabbed his fork, then turned to look at Lenalee with a worried frown. "Is it bad that I'll always remember every single thing I've ordered from that kitchen and how delicious it is?"

"_Eat_." Lenalee reached over with her own fork and stabbed it into a sausage on his plate, then tried to shove it into Allen's open mouth. The boy took a bite and grinned at her.

"I remember what you've made too, Lenalee." Except that chocolate cake. His trauma, sadly, outweighed a desire for a delicious-looking cake baked by Lenalee for _him_ to try. (Although why she'd been baking a birthday cake for Komui in August was beyond him; wasn't her brother's birthday in June?)

Lenalee promptly stuffed the rest of the sausage in his mouth to hide her sudden embarrassed blush.

* * *

As the three Exorcists waited patiently for the match to begin, surrounded by a mass of red and gold with cheers erupting on all sides, Allen couldn't help but wish he'd found out where to get those hats and scarves after all.

"C-cold," he moaned, teeth chattering.

"What're you talking about, Allen? It's not _that_ bad." Despite his brave words, however, Lavi's shoulders were hunched so that his neck disappeared inside his cloak. "Remember that welcome party? Where we were locked inside a freezer for-"

"_That was hell_." Allen gritted his teeth at the mere memory. To think that he'd gone through all those challenges, put his life on the line and preserved hope for a miracle only to find himself locked in a chair, the victim of Komui's paranoia. "That didn't even have a purpose!"

"Seemed Komui thought it did." Lavi wiggled his eyebrows and grinned at Allen and Lenalee, both sitting to his right. "Man, what a shock to hear that you two were going out…"

"We weren't." Lenalee leaned forward to speak to Lavi; Allen, in the middle, shrank back awkwardly. "You know what my brother's like."

"Weren't, huh… So that means you're going out _now_?"

Lenalee promptly punched him. Allen flinched reflexively.

"Really, Lavi," he muttered, with a slightly sympathetic glance towards the older boy, "why would you say something strange like that."

Their conversation was interrupted by the piercing note of a whistle; Allen wasn't the only one of the trio who jumped at the sound. Out of the corner of his eye, Allen noticed a number of shapes rising into the air. Had the match begun?

"So Lavi," he asked in a loud whisper, "how does one play this game again?"

"Well, that's…" Lavi looked pensive for a moment, then shrugged. "It's like basketball on broomsticks, right?"

"What's basketball?"

"Er… something Johnny told me about once… 's about getting a ball into a basket."

"That." The boys followed Lenalee's rapidly moving finger around the court. "I think it's… that player has a big, red ball, doesn't she? Oh, that boy now- well, that's what needs to be put through one of those hoops at either end, right?"

"Right," the boys slowly agreed as such a thing occurred and the booming voice of the commentator announced a goal.

"Perhaps the game ends after a specific number of goals, or after some time," Lenalee suggested. "Or after those black things… er…"

"They're _hitting_ them," Allen realized, wide-eyed. "What does that have to do with…"

"A distraction, it seems," Lavi mumbled as a Gryffindor Chaser narrowly avoided a direct hit. "Game would probably be too easy otherwise."

"_But when does it end_?"

"When they catch the Golden Snitch, of course."

The three Exorcists turned to look at the source of the voice, a third-year girl with wavy brown hair and large blue eyes. She sniffed at them haughtily, then turned her attention back to the game.

"What's the-" Allen started to ask when a glimmer of gold not two metres in front of him caught his eye. _It couldn't be… _"TIMCANPY?!"

"Allen-kun?!" Lenalee slapped a hand over his mouth and pulled him back to face her. "Allen-kun," she hissed, "what do you mean?!"

"That thing's out there?!" Lavi's jaw dropped. "How…"

"It shouldn't be! I left him in my room!" Lenalee and Lavi looked stunned; Allen gave a sheepish smile. "He hid in my sleeve for a few days, and since then, he made a nest of my clothes… but I've never let him out when there are people around! Never!"

"So why's he out-" Lavi jabbed a finger at the Quidditch field, where the golden ball had been hovering minutes before. "Did you forget to close it properly?"

"Timcanpy knows better than that!" Allen said defensively. "And no, I didn't forget!"

"Oh, really, Allen-kun…" Lenalee's voice sounded scary enough that Allen's shoulders tensed at hearing it. He didn't turn around. "So what was Timcanpy doing this morning in the common room?"

"Ah…" Allen blinked suddenly in realization. "Well, we were the only two people there…"

"So somehow, he escaped and is now hanging out on a field where some kids are playing a sport on broomsticks. Wonderful." Lavi threw up his hands dramatically. "We're doomed. There's no way someone won't see him after this."

"I _told_ you, Timcanpy knows better than that!" Allen protested. "He probably went back to my dormitory after Lenalee and I left for breakfast."

"Probably," Lenalee repeated. "I'm inclined to believe Allen-kun, but then… what's out _there_?"

"Timcanpy?" Lavi suggested, getting him a punch in the stomach from Allen. "Oof… Allen, you said so yourself!"

"What am I supposed to think when I see a golden ball with wings?!"

"Then you admit it IS Timcanpy!"

"No!"

"Oh my," Lenalee murmured, "that boy _is_ cute, isn't he."

"WHAT?!" There was the sound of two boys' heads snapping forward, prepared to deliver death glares to any potential boy Lenalee may have been speaking about. Beside Allen, Lenalee tittered softly.

"You know, you two are kind of fun to tease."

Allen pouted; Lavi grunted and settled back into his seat with an obvious effort to look nonchalant.

"That was mean, Lenalee," Allen muttered to her.

"I needed to distract you," she answered, patting his gloved hand apologetically. "Lavi would hardly have fallen for the "there's food over there" trick, and… well…" A faint tinge of red appeared on her cheeks as she continued. "I wasn't quite sure if you would have looked if I'd said some girl removed her shirt…"

"Huh?!" Allen blushed at that, too. "That…"

"So it _would_ have worked!" The corners of Lenalee's mouth twitched upward in a sly smile. "I'll have to remember that."

"No, Lenalee, it really wouldn't have… not like _that_…"

"He'd be restraining me from crawling over everyone to find her," Lavi explained, leaning over to look at the pair. "Allen's too serious. I think he just needs to lighten up and get la- OW!"

Allen had grabbed his ear and shoved the older boy back into the seat. "Lavi, you're an enemy of women, aren't you."

"You bastard, that _hurt_… and what are you talking about, Allen? I care about personality, right? Like Lenalee! I'd totally hit-"

"It _was_ a distraction," Lenalee interrupted, an icy edge to her voice. "Those ones with bats are called Beaters, and they hit the… um… Bludgers at people to distract them."

"So," Lavi continued, "back to Lenalee and her incredible-"

"Lavi!" she hissed.

"-cooking skills, speaking of which, you've never shown me, Lenalee. Sounds…" Lavi didn't finish the sentence, but wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Lenalee's a good cook." Allen turned to face Lavi with a strangely familiar smile. Lavi gulped nervously; was this side of Allen not reserved for poker, after all?! "She doesn't need to show you _anything_ to prove it."

"Right, right… let's watch the game, shall we?" The last place Lavi wanted to be was on this end of an encounter with Dark Allen. It was definitely worth dropping the nevertheless amusing topic.

"Yes, that sounds like an excellent idea right now," Lenalee said forcefully, placing her hands on either side of Allen's torso and turning him to face the field. Allen scowled, but said nothing, and they watched the game in relative peace.

That is, until something caught Allen's attention again. "Snitch? What's that?"

Lenalee gave a soft sound indicating that she'd heard, but was concentrating on the match; two of the players had suddenly changed direction and were heading upwards. Once the whistle had blown again, she turned to her younger friend. "What was that, Allen-kun?"

"They mentioned something about a Snitch. What is it?"

"Hey, look," Lavi pointed to the field. "The game's over." The Gryffindor players had formed an excited cluster, all except for one who had spun out of control and hit the commentator's podium.

"I think he's holding something… Another ball?" Lenalee mused aloud. "They look so excited."

"We won, right?" Allen asked.

"Maybe when they get that ball… the Snitch?... the game ends?"

"Gotta be it. Hey, everyone's leaving." Lavi tugged on Allen's sleeve, rising. "Looks like there's gonna be a party back at Gryffindor Tower. Let's go."

"How do you plan on… Lavi, you're going to follow us?" Allen asked, prying his sleeve free. "Is that allowed, Lenalee?"

"He _is_ an assistant to Professor Binns," Lenalee said slowly. "I don't see why not… it's hardly as if he's a student from another House."

"Hey, hey," Lavi teased, dancing behind Allen, "tell me your password!"

"Gah, go away!" Allen swatted at the boy, who hopped behind Lenalee instead and insisted on repeating the same line.

"Do you want to join the celebrations or not, Lavi?!"

"Of course I do! You wouldn't keep your oldest friend here out of it, would you?" Lavi exclaimed in mock horror.

"If he's behaving like this…!"

"Lenalee! You're such a terrible person! Wait 'till Allen hears about this! Allen!"

As they left, though, Allen spared a last look back at the field. The golden shimmer that marked Timcanpy's presence was nowhere to be seen. Had he just imagined it, or had Timcanpy really been out there? If it had been Tim, where was he now?

It made Allen feel strangely worried…

* * *

Fortunately, no one seemed to notice the intruder, and the three Exorcists managed to make their way to the drinks table with little difficulty. Of course, one excited first-year did manage to come to the conclusion that Lavi was from the Weasley family, but that was really the only time anyone paid attention to him. Some classmates attempted to start up a conversation about the match – "did you see this", or "that was brilliant, wasn't it!" – yet Allen and Lenalee merely smiled and nodded. It was difficult to engage in dialogue about a sport one had no knowledge of except for a few educated guesses.

Fortunately, they were spared from too much embarrassment by the arrival of some of Gryffindor's Quidditch team members, who were promptly mobbed by the crowd of students. The trio exchanged weary glances and went back to enjoying their Butterbeer.

As he passively watched the crowd interact, a pair of familiar faces caught Allen's eye. Too far away for him to hear the conversation – not that he was really all that curious – all Allen noticed was Ginny gesturing to a corner of the common room. Curious, he turned to see what the pair had been discussing – and almost spilled his drink.

He couldn't see either face, latched together as they were, but Allen felt somewhat relieved that what _was _visible didn't seem familiar. To perform such an indecent act in public--! Even Master refrained from such a thing! Face bright red, Allen turned away, embarrassed. That wasn't the sort of thing one should be watching.

"Allen-kun?" Lenalee asked hesitantly, touching his shoulder with her free hand. "Is something wrong?"

"That…" He took a deep breath and looked up to meet her eyes. "You probably shouldn't look over there. It isn't something one should be watching – particularly a lady like yourself, Lenalee."

"What, what?" Lavi bounced up on his toes excitedly. "Where, Allen?"

Allen gave an exasperated sigh; trust Lavi to become curious about something like that.

"Back _there_." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder and quickly moved to block it from Lenalee's view. Lavi looked over Allen's head, eyes suddenly widening as a knowing grin spread across his face.

"Wow, they're really all over each other, huh?"

"Lavi!" Allen hissed, going red again.

"What is it, Allen-kun? I'm curious," Lenalee asked brightly. "What's going on over there, Lavi?"

"Ah, it's no big deal," Lavi muttered, sinking back on his heels. "Now that I look closer, they're not even doing it…"

"Thank goodness for that," Allen snapped. "Really, Lenalee, it's nothing a lady should be seeing-"

"Allen-kun," Lenalee said icily, "I appreciate your gentlemanly concern, but you really don't need to worry about the state of my mind." And with that, she darted behind Allen and casually glanced over at the couple in the corner.

Allen thought he was going to die of humiliation. Lavi was one thing – that womanizer! – but Lenalee, too? Her mind certainly couldn't be as corrupted!

"Oh." Did Lenalee sound almost disappointed!? "Is that all, Allen-kun?"

"Is that- what do you mean?! Aren't you at all embarrassed to see it?!" Allen cried, attracting at least a few curious glances. "That sort of thing…"

"O-of course," she murmured. Allen could see a red tinge spreading across her cheeks as well, although her face was no doubt lighter than his. "Really, though, Allen-kun, it's nothing we haven't seen before, and… and it could be much worse, right?"

Oh yes, it could indeed. Just thinking about the things he'd heard from Cross – and Cross's bed – made him ill. "But in public…" he murmured weakly.

"It is a bit much, but it seems to be a common activity in this time." Already, Lenalee was becoming composed again. Only a faint pink blush remained. "This isn't the first time I've seen it here, and the other girls speak of it fairly often…"

Allen didn't even have to look behind him to know Lavi was wearing a wide, perverted grin. "I didn't know engagements were so popular here," he commented. "I haven't heard anyone mention it… and isn't everyone sort of young?"

"About that…" Lenalee looked embarrassed again. "They're not engaged."

"What?!"

"Allen, come on, you of all people should know what people do outside of marriages," Lavi told him. "_I'm_ your friend, remember?"

"It's normal now," Lenalee explained. "Kissing, and even… even certain activities for marriage… it's…" She struggled to find the right words; how did one tell a gentleman with more knowledge than even Lavi on the topic about modern-day trends in relationships? "Everyone does it," she finally said. "People of all classes and morals engage in such activities in no more than a vaguely committed relationship."

"That's insane," Allen muttered, shaking his head. "Has everyone become like Master?"

"They do have relationships," Lenalee reminded him. "One doesn't need to be married to do such a thing now, though. For that matter, things like holding hands and embraces are quite casual, too."

"Unbelievable."

"What, so it's not that way in- er, back home?" Lavi asked slyly. "Then what about _you_?"

"Us?" Allen and Lenalee asked at the same time.

"You get engaged or somethin' without telling us?" At their blank stares, Lavi elaborated. "If holding hands is for that kind of commitment, and you've been doing-"

"It's for battle," Lenalee said quickly, Allen nodding silently. If his face had become any paler in the last few minutes, it did not show now. "If we're fighting in the air, or…"

"Or when Lenalee's legs were injured," Allen added.

"Of course. Not once have you ever held hands when you weren't in combat. Same goes for hugs." Lavi's sceptical look made Allen cringe; suddenly, the memories of all the times he'd done just that had flooded back into his mind. It was difficult to utter such a blatant lie as a simple "no", especially when one of those incidents had occurred just days before.

"The Order is a very modern place," Lenalee said evenly. "No one would even give my uniform a second glance today."

"Ahhhh, so that's it, huh?" Lavi wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "So you, as a modern woman, would be willing to-"

Allen's fist made contact with Lavi's cheek.

"_That's indecent, Lavi_," he managed to growl through clenched teeth.

"Oww, that hurt, Allen- ARGH!" For Lenalee had happily kneed him in the stomach.

"Honestly, Lavi," she told him with a frown, "haven't you learned yet?"

"Well," Lavi grinned, spitting blood into his hand and giving it a concerned look, "it was a worse comment than saying you need to act sexy to get a lover, and the punishment was worse, too."

"That was completely wrong of you, Lavi." Allen scowled at the older boy.

"I agree," Lavi nodded. "Of course you'd see it in such a way, Allen. Not only are you sensitive to such indecency as is being displayed in that corner over there, but I should have realized that you'd be happy to fulfill such a role for Lenalee as she is now."

This time, Lenalee was quicker to react as it took Allen a few seconds to process the thought.

Strangely enough, all he got was a light slap from his female companion and a threat, complete with balled fist, from Allen. To someone with as excellent observational skills as Lavi, the reason was quite obvious.

Then again, he agreed: Lenalee was quite sexy already.

* * *

Every Tuesday afternoon, Allen would wonder if there was possibly a worse way to spend his time than mindlessly copying notes from the History of Magic lectures.

Oh, of course, Lavi was there to keep him company, but the older boy's presence was hardly a comfort or a source of amusement. It took all Allen's strength to keep his own eyes open most of the time, and a quick glance around the room would have told him he had more of that strength than most. It was therefore no surprise that, when he was not intently listening to every word of the lecture, Lavi was the first to fall prey to sleep.

Drawing on Lavi's face had grown boring by the second lecture; Allen wondered how Lavi managed to find new enjoyment out of such a silly thing every time.

Right now, though, he was almost tempted to start a game of tic-tac-toe with himself on Lavi's forehead.

Allen sighed and released his quill; even reading the text might be more interesting than _that_. A pity he wasn't feeling tired right now. If only Lenalee hadn't poured him that cup of coffee at breakfast…

The topic of the day: the late 18th century, a period of time where people and events would have no direct impact on Allen's life, unless a wizard somehow managed to learn the secret to immortality and managed to infiltrate the Order. Allen idly wondered if the Order checked any potential applicant's background.

…Now that he thought about it, perhaps that was how they knew more about his status as the Musician than even he did. Strange.

In the few moments that he managed to keep his attention on Professor Binns' droning voice, Allen discovered that the wizard-of-the-moment was apparently a genius from Germany who had discovered many new spells and magical items, and travelled all over the world. Although he felt oddly reminded of Cross, Allen scanned through the chapter on this wizard anyway. He'd apparently settled in China after being involved in the founding of a great organization that combined the talents of wizards and Muggles, and…

…why did that seem familiar?

Finally, Allen's eyes fell on the moving picture at the bottom of the page, and everything fell into place. The spy in the Order – he'd heard this before, hadn't he – it couldn't be anyone else; the facial structure was somewhat different, probably from generations of breeding in a foreign gene pool, but there was no mistaking the resemblance.

Allen nudged his sleeping friend. "Lavi!" he hissed. "Wake up!"

Lavi showed no signs of awakening. Allen kicked his ankle sharply, and when Lavi mumbled something incoherent, something tugged his earlobe. The Bookman apprentice's eye shot open and he would have jumped to his feet had Allen not taken hold of his robes and pulled him back into his seat.

"Allen?" Lavi murmured drowsily. "What is it?"

"I found him!" Allen whispered excitedly. "The high-ranking Order member who can perform magic – why didn't I remember this earlier?"

"You did?" Lavi was wide awake now, leaning over Allen's shoulder to read the pages of the open textbook. "Who-"

"It's Bak. Lavi, Bak-san's the high-ranking wizard."

"Are you serious?" Lenalee asked at dinner that night. Allen and Lavi had told her everything at the first opportunity, and she immediately decided to read about the German wizard for herself. "Isn't Bak-san part of the Asia branch, though? We thought it must be someone within HQ."

"It could be," Allen admitted. "Even so, Bak-san has a fairly high-ranking position, doesn't he? His great-grandfather was involved in the establishment of the Order, and he created Fou. All this…" He chewed his upper lip worriedly. "I've even seen him control parts of the branch; it was clear right from the beginning that he wasn't using technology for that! I should've remembered this earlier…"

"It's all right, Allen-kun. Now we'll just have to be careful around Bak-san, too…" Lenalee closed the book and returned it to her bag. "Assuming he'd even notice if he's been so careless around us."

"To think that Bak had a German ancestor all this time," Lavi muttered.

"Lavi…" Allen gave him an _are-you-SERIOUS?_ look. "That information wasn't exactly new to us."

"Right, right, of course. If the founding involved wizards, though…" Lavi frowned, looking deep in thought. "Perhaps the Levellier family could be involved with… with this… after all."

"Hevlaska?" Lenalee murmured. "She was alive back then. Perhaps…"

"Can we trust her?" Lavi said softly. "Hevlaska seems nice, but if we have to be wary of everyone…"

Allen nodded. "Just because she's our comrade in fighting the Millennium Earl doesn't mean…"

That section of the table fell into a gloomy silence. If they couldn't even trust their oldest friends with their secret…

Which made Lavi break the quiet mood by asking: "What about Kanda?"

Allen gave a doubtful laugh. "Do you think he'd even care?"

"I don't think Kanda would betray us…" There was no confidence in either Lenalee's voice or expression, however. "He can't be a wizard, though. He came to the Order not long after I did. Even if he could use magic, he wouldn't be involved with them."

"I have a difficult time picturing Kanda being involved with anything," Allen said sourly. Lenalee frowned at him, and Allen erased the scowl on his face that had appeared at the mention of that annoying person. Kanda was still a friend, at least, and Lenalee had to be missing him…

"We'll see when we get back," Lavi interrupted. "Until then, all we can really do is find out who to avoid for sure. Dunno why we'd tell Cross or Bak, but you two are pretty friendly with Johnny…"

"He's a nice guy," Allen said cheerfully, although exchanged a nervous glance with Lenalee. Some people were just a little too social for the boy's liking.

"…so we don't want him finding out anything that we don't want him to know."

"We'll try," Lenalee told the red-haired Exorcist. "Johnny can be a bit enthusiastic, but at least now we know to be extra careful around him."

"All the time," Allen added.

"To preserve our memories of this place," Lavi finished.

Conveniently, as the last word left Lavi's lips, Allen's stomach grumbled.

* * *

Once again, Lenalee had snuck out from her bed in the middle of the night and set up her books on a table in the Gryffindor common room. Allen had bidden her goodnight a few hours before, when most students had already left for the comfort of sleep, and, it being Tuesday night, the rest were slowly trickling out even then.

He'd given her a wary look and told her to be careful; her attempts to reassure him of her caution had failed. Had he somehow found out about Hermione?

Lenalee _hated_ it when people worried about her. Yes, she knew Allen worried because he cared – that's what friends did – but couldn't he trust her a little? The spells she was practising were hardly dangerous!

Although now that she thought about it, maybe Allen just didn't like the idea of magic. After that incident a week earlier-

Just remembering it caused Lenalee to blush a dark red, especially in light of Lavi's comments that weekend. In this time, such a thing was normal between friends! She'd known it at the time!

_Did Allen-kun?_

…whatever Allen did or did not know was none of her concern. He certainly seemed to know enough about romantic interaction; how likely was he to see a simple hug as a casual sign of comfort between friends? Anyway, Lenalee had befriended boys who had shown a more-than-friendly interest in her – Lavi, for one – and nothing more had come out of it. Why should Allen be any different?

_And even if something does happen_, she thought, _that would be normal, too. We're not in a time when a gentleman can't even speak to a lady without first being introduced… although now that I think about it, Allen-kun never followed that rule, did he-_

…_that is, how would it be strange for anything to happen here? One or two dates, perhaps a kiss- _Lenalee ignored how hot her face felt at the thought and forced herself to continue. _In the end, if it doesn't work out, how difficult could it possibly be to remain friends? And if it does, well…_

An image of her brother formed in Lenalee's mind. She sighed; as much as she missed him, there were times when the feeling was a bit inappropriate. _Then we'll go back to being friends anyway_, she finished. _And I'll just have to hope that Allen-kun is good at keeping secrets._

No reason to think otherwise, of course. Feeling much better about that aspect of the future (despite not being what she'd originally intended to reflect on!), Lenalee happily opened _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_, pulled out her wand, and began practising spells that she had never once shown any hint of being able to perform.

Perhaps it was her unusually cheerful mood, or an accumulation of training from many sessions in the past. Perhaps it was something else entirely. Whatever the reason, though, as Lenalee happily made Attempt #576 at a charm to make objects hover in the air, the effects were vastly different from the previous five hundred and seventy-five results.

The white quill no longer rested serenely on the table in front of her. It now rested serenely in the air in front of her nose.

Lenalee couldn't believe her eyes. Was this a trick? Had Allen exchanged her quill for one that magically hovered to boost her confidence, or to make her feel better about her attempts at magic? Had someone left a window open and this was all the wind's doing? It couldn't be…

As she turned her attention to something larger – a tiny keychain shaped like a cat that had been a welcoming gift from her dorm-mates – the quill fell to the table. To her immense shock and delight, the loose keychain managed to defy the laws of gravity and floated in the air for at least ten seconds.

Suddenly, nothing smaller than the table was immune to Lenalee's newly discovered talent. Cushions – scrolls – textbooks – everything she pointed her wand at with a whispered murmur found a temporary home in the air around her. As she circled the room, twirling and laughing softly, something new rose to replace the old that fell with a soft 'thump' every few moments. When she passed the table, Lenalee paused momentarily to review another spell, for movement, and soon, not a thing she could currently lift remained motionless.

"I did it," she whispered excitedly, a small pillow zooming past her head with a flick of her wand. "I really did it. I can do magic!"

* * *

There is a reason for that plot twist at the end, and if you don't know why, it'll be revealed near the end. I don't want to spoil the rest of the story for you.

This is going to sound desperate, but PLEASE REVIEW. I love reviews. I don't care what you have to say as long as it isn't "I hate Allen/Lenalee please make it another pairing". Did you hate the ridiculous amount of flirtation in this chapter? Anyone out-of-character? Did you love a particular scene/line? Tell me! I'd love to know what you thought, whether you loved or hated it!

Next chapter should be out on August 3rd if I can manage it after Clownfish. The reason? Guess what's next! Yes… it's Christmas, and what's so special about Christmas? Heh heh heh. I know what you're thinking – and you can bet that I'll be writing it. (Spoiler! Ahaha.) Well, unless you're thinking something like what happened throughout this volume of Harry Potter or worse, in which case you might be disappointed. It's a start, though.


	8. Scroll 8

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: Um. Er. Yeah. No. I don't own DGM.

If you don't understand the title, you are missing out on the _Holy Grail_ of comedy movies. GO WATCH IT NOW.

* * *

Scroll Eight: So Lenalee Weighs Less Than A Duck?! (She Should Eat More!)

Allen was terribly worried about Lenalee.

From the moment he'd awoken that morning, bright and early, he'd gotten the feeling that something was going to go very wrong for him today. When he saw Lenalee in the common room, anxiously twitching as she scanned the room for something – him, he soon discovered; why had Lenalee been waiting for him? They always met in the Great Hall in the morning for breakfast – he instantly knew it had to do with her. And throughout breakfast, Allen was forced to watch his best friend eat as if it were just a normal day, despite the fact that she only picked at her food and her violet eyes were constantly darting around the room to search for Lavi.

"Lenalee," he finally gathered up the courage to whisper, "is everything all right?"

"Fine," Lenalee chirped quickly. "Absolutely fine. Better than that, in fact. I'm _great_."

Her shoulder was trembling under his hand.

Allen nodded and went back to his own breakfast, but everything tasted like ashes in his mouth. With a sigh, he put down his fork, having eaten not much more than Lenalee. It was something he'd certainly regret later, having an appetite unrivalled among humankind, but for now, Lenalee was the priority. To be so worried he couldn't eat was unthinkable, but then again…

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted when Lenalee grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the table. Allen yelped sharply, then began to protest about his interrupted breakfast (that he hadn't been eating anyway). The female Exorcist ignored his complaints and proceeded to drag the poor boy over to the teacher's table, grab Lavi, and force the pair, kicking and screaming (metaphorically, of course; Allen was pouting and Lavi was still in shock) out of the Great Hall and through the hallways into a small, unused classroom.

It was here that she finally spoke with all of the emotion she'd been previously hiding.

"I… I need to show you something. Both of you."

Allen couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was not the content of her sentence that surprised him, though, but the excited tone in which she uttered it. If whatever she was hiding was a good thing, something that made her so anxious for the moment when she could reveal it, how could it possibly be something bad? Then again, the feeling hadn't necessarily meant it was bad _for Lenalee_; he'd just assumed the worst for once.

"What is it, Lenalee?" Ever the blunt one, Lavi wasted no time in asking. "Sounds cool, if you're so happy about it."

Lenalee blushed lightly, sending a jolt of fear through Allen. Suddenly, the warning was starting to become very clear. If Lenalee was blushing, did that mean- "It's quite amazing. I would have told you earlier, only I just found out last night, and I didn't want to wake anyone, not that I could…"

"Last _night_, huh?" Lavi wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "And Allen doesn't already know?"

The female Exorcist sent him a warning glare, although her blush intensified.

"Why would I know?" Allen wondered aloud. If Lenalee had… if she… if there had been… well, at any rate, why would he have found out before Lavi? "Lenalee didn't want to tell me about this earlier, Lavi, not before she could find you."

"Evidently." The junior Bookman's lips twitched into a smirk. "I'm surprised she's telling you at _all_ if that's the case."

"Huh?" Allen turned to Lavi, worried. "Why wouldn't Lenalee…"

"That's the sort of thing you don't tell the person! For that matter, why is she telling _me_ unless…" Lavi's voice dropped into an exaggeratedly horrified whisper. "Don't tell me – _you two broke up_?!"

"That's enough!" Seemingly out of nowhere, a pair of textbooks smacked the boys in the head.

Allen hissed in pain, then bent over to pick up the textbook. "You didn't have to throw them, Lenalee…"

Lavi nodded in agreement. "How'd you get these, anyway?" he mused, turning the book over in his hands. "The pile's over at the other end of the room. You mean you _planned_ this?!"

Both boys gave her shocked and hurt looks. Lenalee glared at them, then turned her back to the other Exorcists and crossed her arms. "It isn't _that_ difficult to guess that Lavi will say something that he deserves it for."

"But _I_ didn't!" Allen whined.

"Wait…" Lavi began, the memories of the room as they'd entered leading to a sudden realisation. "Lenalee, you _didn't_ have these books earlier. They were… they were over on that pile…"

Lenalee nodded, seemingly satisfied at Lavi's conclusion. Obviously, he'd figured everything out by now.

"…so for you to have gotten them over here, to hit us on the head with…" The connection had been made; Lavi's eyebrows nearly disappeared under his green bandana. "Lenalee, you…"

"Lenalee what?" Allen asked, clearly a little slower on the uptake than his older friend.

"Yes," Lenalee confirmed triumphantly, cheeks still pink with an excited blush. "So far, it's all I can do, but with practice…"

"Wow. …_Wow_," was all Lavi could say at first. "That's incredible. Way more interesting than if you'd been cheating on Allen with some boy from this time."

"What?!" That had certainly caught Allen's attention. He gave her a heart-wrenchingly painful look of hurt. "Lenalee, you…"

"…she's not with another guy, Allen. Don't worry." Lavi reached over to ruffle his friend's white hair teasingly. "Or at least, that's not what she called us here for."

"Anyway," Lenalee continued, clearing her throat nervously, "…that was all. I suppose I should see Professor McGonagall about this, ask about entry into new classes, or how I would go about taking lessons to get me to the required level…"

Allen looked completely blank, although he had the worrisome feeling that this was the bad thing he'd been warned about, and he should know what it was by now. "What do you mean, Lenalee?" he asked hesitantly. "Aren't we at the proper levels already?"

Lenalee and Lavi stared at the boy incredulously. He _still_ hadn't figured it out?

"Never mind," Lavi told him at the same time Lenalee pointed her wand at the stack of books and mumbled something incoherent. The poor cursed Exorcist was promptly mobbed by eighteen flying paper cuts.

"Ow! …Lenalee, what did you have to do that for?!" Allen pushed a couple of books away from his face and pouted at her. "That wasn't…" He stopped in mid-sentence, mouth opening and closing silently as the strangeness of the situation finally made its way into his mind. "Lenalee… how did you do that?" he asked carefully.

Lenalee's answering smile was brighter than anything she'd worn earlier. For that matter, he hadn't seen her so joyful since they'd arrived in this time period. It made him feel a spark of happiness that could even make his sinking heart feel just a little lighter.

"I told you it wasn't impossible, didn't I, Allen-kun?" she murmured, her voice swelling with that overwhelming delight that comes when one's dream is fulfilled. "It's still a bit early to try a spell of _that_ level, or to discover it, but it seems so easy now that I've overcome the most difficult step! Allen-kun, I can do magic now! Isn't it wonderful?"

"Great," Lavi muttered, feeling just a little miffed that he was being ignored.

"It's…" Allen shook his head in awe, words failing him at the moment. "It's definitely… incredible," he repeated.

It was, and Allen couldn't help but feel overjoyed that Lenalee, his best friend and Exorcist companion, had achieved something she'd wanted more than almost anything else in the world at that moment. Her happiness was somewhat contagious; even as Allen glanced over to Lavi, a silly half-smile had spread across his face. Certainly, Lavi hadn't had that late-night conversation with Lenalee about her dream and why she wanted it so badly; Lavi hadn't held her in his arms as she-

-and was Lavi aware of the conflict that had made a rift in Allen's heart between the joy and sadness that had replaced hope and fear, emotions that had torn him apart ever since that conversation? Had Lavi thought of the consequences, what this could mean for everyone?

Lenalee could do magic. Lenalee was a witch. Lenalee was different from her Muggle friends, and always would be.

And yet, Allen thought sadly as he stared into Lenalee's deep violet eyes, Lenalee was happy like this. This was what she wanted.

"I'll find it," she was saying determinedly. "I'll find the spell and we'll go back and be together with everyone again. Wouldn't that be great?"

Allen nodded half-heartedly. Even if they were reunited with the others, it wouldn't be the same – most of all, between Lenalee and everyone else. Had she thought about that?

She had to. This was Lenalee, after all; the thought would have entered her mind sooner or later. Had she dismissed it and hoped for the best? Or had she decided – or realised? – that somehow, things really would be all right?

_Hope for the best, Allen_. _Negative thinking won't get you anywhere! Everything will be all right. Lenalee's thought about everything already, and you trust her, right?_

The smile and congratulations he gave her were genuine this time, and the smile she repaid him with made it worth everything.

Allen was fortunate enough to have a class just moments away from Lenalee's corresponding one on Wednesday mornings, and he cheerfully escorted her to Professor McGonagall's office after they parted with Lavi. An overly excited Lenalee almost couldn't stop babbling about the classes she'd get to be a part of.

"…and I think I might have an easier time with Defence Against the Dark Arts since it's nonverbal spells this year, and I haven't gotten used to using words yet… well, and because of my Exorcist background- oh, Allen-kun!" she suddenly exclaimed. "I'm rambling on and on and boring you to pieces, aren't I?!"

The younger Exorcist shook his head and smiled politely; he didn't completely understand what Lenalee was talking about, but she was hardly boring. Besides, his attention was completely focused on her to prevent any pessimistic thoughts from entering a wandering mind. "Not at all, Lenalee. You seem really happy talking about this, and…"

Lenalee flushed, a bit embarrassed. "Thank you, Allen-kun. For listening to me, and… for supporting me."

Allen opened his mouth to protest that it was nothing really, when Lenalee took his hand and squeezed it gently. There was nothing he could say to that.

As his features softened into a relaxed smile, Lenalee held back a soft laugh. She could see the worry in his eyes, in the premature lines of his young-looking face, yet the content his smile conveyed could be felt in the gentle yet firm grip of his hand around hers. Of course Allen would worry about her new status; there was no way he wouldn't know of the social stigma attached to Muggles by the magical, and if it had any weight in her mind, Allen had to be painfully aware of it. After all, he was the one who had tried to keep his distance from everyone else, befriending the other Order members without ever really becoming too close. It hadn't quite succeeded, as recent events – ones that made her heart lighten at the memory – had shown. Yet wasn't it in case of something like this that Allen had tried to keep his distance? If he got too close to someone only to be forcefully separated…

"Nothing will change, Allen-kun," Lenalee whispered, half to herself. "No matter what happens, we will always be…" She frowned, trying to think of a way to finish the sentence. 'Friends' seemed to be the most obvious term to use, yet somehow, it felt strangely inappropriate… as if it didn't properly convey the strength of the bond between them, between any of the Exorcists, or between anyone in the Order who had faced death with each other and been bonded by their experiences. If not friends, then companions? Yet that word seemed so simple, too.

What did she really intend to promise?

"We'll always be together," Lenalee finally said, emphasizing her statement with another squeeze of his hand. "I won't let this, or anything else, pull us apart."

She meant that on an emotional level too, and Allen understood completely.

_See? Lenalee knows that everything will be all right. She'll fight for that. _I'll _fight for that._

_If I can afford to._

The overwhelming sadness was back in his eyes for a brief moment, but Lenalee knew it wasn't because of her this time. It was that kind of hopelessness she'd resolved to fight against, and perhaps with magic, she could…

Even as they reached the office door, as Lenalee discussed her courses with Professor McGonagall, as she demonstrated her new ability, their hands never came unclasped. The warmth of Allen's palm reminded Lenalee of home, and gave her the courage to put on the best performance of defying the laws of physics yet.

* * *

Later that day, another mystery was solved.

Allen and Lenalee had just returned to the Gryffindor common room from dinner, having enjoyed a nice conversation with Lavi (mostly about what had happened to Lenalee after they'd separated, although both Exorcists left out the details about their mutual hand-holding). Calmly discussing the events of that day, which had been forgotten earlier, neither of them noticed the golden blur floating in the air until a female cry pierced the air.

"Oh, it's so _cuuuuute_!"

Every head in the mostly-empty room snapped over to see the source of the voice. It was Ginny Weasley, having discovered a tiny flying creature in a dark corner, and was now being investigated by said creature.

"Oh, oh, it landed on me! What do I… awww, you're a cute little one, aren't you," she cooed, scratching its smooth… head? body? gently.

One look was all it took to send Allen and Lenalee dashing to that end of the room.

"You said he was hidden in your trunk!" Lenalee hissed under her breath.

"He was!" Allen replied, shooting her a look that said _Why would I lie? _It was promptly amended after a glare from Lenalee to a _Well, what do you want me to do about it NOW? _one.

The trio of friends from Lenalee's Potions class approached the girl. Now that Allen took a closer look, was the nameless red-haired one a relative? He certainly seemed pretty close to her, and they looked quite alike. Hadn't one of his dorm-mates mentioned something about the Weasleys and red hair? "What're you looking at, Ginny? Is that a Snitch?"

"I don't know, Ron, but it sort of looks like one, doesn't it? Here, Harry, you take it. You've got more experience with them than we do."

The golem was dropped into the older boy's hands without a fuss.

"…I don't think so." Harry frowned. "Look, its wings are gold, and it has that long thing coming out… like a tail. Got all these little stubs, too."

By now, Lenalee and Allen were close enough to properly identify the little creature on sight even if Harry had not described it perfectly.

Lenalee could not remain quiet. "Allen-kun! You _did_ let Timcanpy out!"

The white-haired Exorcist received a prompt smack to the back of his head. "But Lenalee, how could he have left Gryffindor Tower? No one leaves the windows open at this time of year…"

"And he's even made friends!"

Indeed, the ginger-coloured cat from the morning of the Quidditch tournament was perched happily on the back of a nearby chair, taking the occasional swat whenever Timcanpy peeked through Harry's fingers. It made the golem scramble back in fear.

With a muttered 'excuse me', Allen squeezed his way into the small circle of friends and eyed Timcanpy nervously. Once the golem had seen its master, Allen whispered out of the corner of his mouth, "Timcanpy! Get over here!"

Timcanpy glanced back at the four modern-day humans and paused to think about his chances of escape. As soon as their eyes were off the tiny golden ball, it hopped up to the edge of Harry's hand and let itself fall to the ground. Mere centimetres before impact, golden wings whirred into action, sending it hurtling into Allen's awaiting hands.

Time for the escape. Despite Lenalee's outbursts, no one had noticed the Exorcists' presence nearby. Allen had dropped to his knees and was about to withdraw when someone – he was too panicked to notice who – noticed the white head of hair at about knee-level.

"Oh, Allen, is that you? What are you doing down there?"

Allen grinned sheepishly, waved with his free hand, and shuffled backwards out of the circle. The feeling of four pairs of eyes on his back, however, forced him to turn around once he straightened up and give a proper explanation.

"I just… came to see what the commotion was," Allen said, forcing his smile to stretch the corners of his mouth. "A Snitch, you said? That's…"

"It isn't a Sni- Hey, it's gone!" Ginny exclaimed, pointing to Harry's empty hands. "What…"

Four pairs of eyes instantly focused on the golden ball that Allen had inconveniently forgotten to hide behind his back.

"Now how did that get there?!" Allen exclaimed, as if Timcanpy had wandered into his cupped hands all on its own. "What a strange thing to happen!"

Fortunately, Lenalee was right behind him to salvage the situation… or attempt to. "What's going on over here?" she chirped, gliding over to Allen and peering, as if curious, at the golden golem. "Oh, isn't it cute! It's a Snitch? I haven't seen one before! I didn't know they were so adorable!"

"It _isn't_ a Snitch," Harry said, somewhat irritated at the interruption. "It's something else."

"How can you not have seen one before?" the other boy – Ron, was it? – scoffed. "You know what Quidditch is!"

"We've only ever seen one game, and we weren't very close to the field," Lenalee said calmly, scooping up Timcanpy in her hands and bouncing him gently up and down. "So if this isn't one, then…"

"The real Snitch has silver wings, not gold," Harry explained, "and it's just a round ball with nothing sticking out. I don't know what that is… must be some sort of prank. Explodes a few minutes after activation or something."

"Fred and George didn't say anything about it, though." Ginny frowned. "And since Zonko's is closed…"

Allen and Lenalee exchanged bemused glances. Who were Fred and George? Students in another year? Another House?

"But _perhaps_ it should be confiscated and given to Professor Dumbledore, or someone else in authority." Hermione looked almost triumphant as she strode over to Lenalee with the intent of taking Timcanpy. "What if it's something meant to injure or kill us? We _need_ to take it to- EEK!"

Hermione had reached to take Timcanpy, only to have the golem decide he didn't want to be removed from Lenalee's hands, thankyouverymuch, and bare its teeth in warning. This was perhaps the worst possible way to convince someone of how un-dangerous it could be.

"It… it…" Hermione stammered, hand clutched protectively to her chest as she gaped at the golem. "It IS dangerous! It's got teeth! That can't be safe!"

A low growl came from the boy next to her and he stepped in front of Hermione protectively. "What'd she ever do to you?" he demanded of Timcanpy, who, at the sight of Ron's fierce glare, closed its mouth and huddled face-down in Lenalee's hands. "Gimme that, Lenalee! I'll crush that-"

"And he'd reform again even more angry than before," Allen muttered under his breath.

"-bugger until it-"

"Stop it!" Hands wrapped protectively around the golem, Lenalee spun around, knocking Ron's approaching hands away with her elbow. "Leave it alone! He hasn't actually hurt anyone!"

"_He?_" the four modern-day students repeated.

"Lenalee…" Harry said slowly. "You… know what this thing is?"

"I guessed," Lenalee said sharply, a faint pink colouring of her cheeks the only sign of the lie. "It's moving around in my hands, like a small animal would. I think he's scared."

"But he's okay, right?" Allen asked her, suddenly feeling somewhat anxious over Timcanpy's safety. What if he'd been injured somehow and it hadn't actually healed-

"He's fine," Lenalee whispered without looking at him. In a louder tone, she said, "I don't know, Allen-kun. Perhaps that's why he's-"

"Allen?" Ginny stepped forward now, curiosity provoked by his comment to Lenalee. "Do you know it- him?"

Allen's grey eyes darted guiltily to Lenalee's hands, a gesture that was not missed by the red-haired girl. "No," he said calmly, his voice only slightly strained, yet it was enough to make his classmate sceptical.

"Really? Then why did you ask about it?"

"It's a living thing, right? That's what Lenalee said, and…" He trailed off, giving Lenalee a look that said _I REALLY need your help now, more than Timcanpy does!_

Fortunately, Lenalee caught the glance. "Because it moves," she interjected smoothly. "Like a… a bird or something, not a robot."

Of course, the Exorcists knew how robots behaved, having encountered them before, but how were they to know that such things were still uncommon even a hundred years in the future?

"A robot… you say?" Ginny gave Lenalee an unreadable look and turned back to Allen. "Oh! Do you mean it's an inanimate object with a spell placed on it? One to make it behave like a living creature?"

_They have those?_ "I don't know…" Allen said slowly. He'd never really thought about how golems were made before, particularly ones like Timcanpy that had personalities and… well, they could _think_. He was pretty sure the little golem was smarter than many people he'd met before, like… oh, say… a certain soba-loving Exorcist with a girly haircut… "He could be…"

"So you DO know it!"

A quick, panicked glance at Lenalee told Allen she was wearing an expression that silently said _Allen, I can't believe you're that stupid. You'd better hide yourself well once this is over._

He swallowed nervously. "We don't really know for sure, right? If it isn't a Snitch…"

"Allen," Ginny said stiffly, "_what is it_." Behind her, the three sixth-years gave nods of agreement.

The white-haired Exorcist opened his mouth, wondering whether to tell the truth, bend it a little, or continue denying any knowledge of it, when he felt someone's foot nudge his ankle a bit more tensely than its owner would usually have done.

"Allen-kun," Lenalee said in that even tone that he knew meant she was secretly furious at him, "why don't you explain how you know him? Here, he's all yours." With that, Timcanpy was unceremoniously dumped into his gloved hands and Allen was left to gape at four triumphant-looking Hogwarts students. Lenalee had apparently found a spot on the wall more interesting than Allen, so he was, at least, spared that tiny bit of embarrassment.

"W-well… I… I'm not sure where to begin," Allen said nervously, sparing another pleading glance at Lenalee (in vain). Timcanpy fidgeted in his hands, evidently a bit embarrassed at being caught now that his master was in such an awkward situation. "This…"

Four pairs of expectant gazes slowly began to give off an impatient air.

"This is Timcanpy!" Allen blurted out quickly. "He's my golem."

Those four gazes became bemused.

"Golem. Um. He's like a pet… sort of!" he added quickly as Timcanpy opened his mouth in warning. "A friend. Tim's a friend. He can record things and replay them later on."

A soft hiss made Allen flinch and quickly glance at Lenalee; she was giving him a fierce look. Was that something he shouldn't have revealed? What if they didn't have-

"Oh, that's all?" Somehow, Ginny almost sounded… disappointed? "So it's a pet that records video?"

"Something like that," Allen said weakly. The three sixth-years seemed equally disillusioned, if the pouts, scowls, and weary frowns they wore were any indication. What had they been expecting? "Ah, and he isn't really dangerous. The teeth are real, but he doesn't usually bite people."

"Usually?" Hermione asked, voice rising dangerously in pitch.

"W-well… to wake someone up, for example…" Now that Allen thought about it, Timcanpy actually might be a bit more of a threat than he'd told the others… but only to his master, of course. Knowing Timcanpy, he wouldn't so much as nip the girls. The boys, on the other hand… well… what reason could Tim possibly have to bite them?

"He's sort of cute," Ginny murmured, smiling gently as she reached out to stroke Timcanpy lightly. The golem shuddered in Allen's hands, almost as if it were… "Did he just _purr_?"

"I wonder," Lenalee said quietly, expression mimicking Ginny's although her eyes were fixed firmly on Timcanpy. "Strange for one that doesn't like cats."

"He doesn't like cats?" Hermione said a little stiffly. Next to her, Ron wore a satisfied smile; evidently, Timcanpy wasn't the only one who felt that way.

"He gets eaten sometimes," Allen explained. "Ah, but don't worry about the cat! We can get them to spit him out quite painlessly… most of the time…"

"So you know it too, Lenalee?" Harry asked her, his first real reaction to this revelation.

Lenalee nodded. "I've known Timcanpy longer than Allen-kun, now that I think about it. He used to belong to a… mutual acquaintance," she added to the curious classmates.

"Was he made to look like a Snitch?" Ron asked, running a finger lightly along Timcanpy's wing. The golem yawned, but otherwise made no indication that he was planning to move.

"A… I don't know," Lenalee admitted. "To us, though, a Snitch would probably look like Timcanpy. Maybe that's what…"

"Possibly." Allen rubbed Timcanpy with his thumb, rocking the still golem to one side before it fell back onto its four stubby legs. "Master would've known about it before he made Timcanpy, right? So…"

"Hm. I never thought about it that way." Lenalee straightened up at that moment and surveyed the others with a thoughtful look. "So what kind of creature is a Snitch, then? It's part of Quidditch, right?"

"What?" Ron gaped. "How can you not-"

"They're Muggle-born," Hermione said with a forced cheerfulness. To Lenalee's eyes, she was visibly careful not to look at the two Exorcists as she explained, "No one must've explained the game to them yet, and it can't be easy to understand if you can't see what's going on."

"The Golden Snitch is a ball," Harry told the time-travellers. "A ball with wings, enchanted to fly around the Quidditch court. If the Seeker – for the Gryffindor team, that's me – catches it, the team gets a hundred and fifty points. The game ends when that happens."

"Oh…" Allen and Lenalee said in unison. Suddenly, the events they had witnessed at the game made much more sense.

"So that thing we saw was…" Lenalee murmured.

"The Golden Snitch," Allen finished, nodding. "I _told_ you it couldn't have been Timcanpy!"

Lenalee nodded, blushing. "You're right," she said sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I should have believed you… Allen-kun would never be so careless, and Timcanpy knows better than to escape like that."

"No, it's fine, Lenalee," Allen told her. "Even I had a hard time believing it wasn't Timcanpy, or some sort of copy, after…"

A sudden coo, rising in pitch, caused the Exorcists to abruptly terminate their conversation and look at the source: Ginny, who was happily petting a content-looking Timcanpy. The golem had rolled onto its back in a catlike manner. "It's so cute! He reminds me of Arnold!"

"What're you talking about, Ginny?" Ron demanded. "It doesn't look a thing like a Pygmy Puff."

"But it's small and cute and-"

"We should keep this a secret, shouldn't we, Lenalee?" Hermione interrupted, surprising the others. When they looked at her quizzically, she nodded to the now-open portrait, where a small group of second-years had entered while playing with some sort of light-emitting ball with gelatinous tentacles hanging from it. "If you didn't want even us to know…"

"Thank you," Lenalee agreed, nodding. "We… would really prefer that the rest of Gryffindor not find out about this…"

"No problem," Ginny reassured them, with a sad look towards Timcanpy as she withdrew. "You wouldn't want to bring him to classes, though, would you, Allen…"

"Sorry." Allen gave an apologetic shrug. "Even the other boys don't know."

"We'll be sure to keep quiet," Hermione finished with a pointed look at the other two sixth-years. "From _everyone_."

Ron flinched. "You really don't trust me on that?" he hissed, more than a hint of hurt in his voice. "Like I haven't been able to keep my mouth shut for all the years you've known me?"

"You haven't," the brown-haired girl said a bit _too_ calmly, "not when _Lavender's_ around."

Allen's head immediately snapped to face Lenalee, silently asking for an explanation. Under her breath, she mumbled, "they're a couple."

"Who?" The Exorcist boy frowned. "Ron and Hermione?"

"Ron and Lavender!" Lenalee whispered sharply. "Don't let-" She cut off her sentence as they noticed a pair of bespectacled green eyes beginning to focus on them. Had Harry overheard them? Not that it was something they shouldn't have been talking about, but it was an uncomfortable feeling, that of knowing someone else was listening to you speak without your knowledge.

In the meantime, the argument had quickly escalated.

"…know-it-all-BITCH!" A flash of red stormed off towards the portrait hole as Hermione turned her head away with a loud sniff.

"Go back to Lavender, then!" she declared. "At least you can't tell secrets with your TONGUE down her throat!" And she too spun around abruptly to stride across to the girls' dormitory entrance, chin in the air.

The four remaining students gaped at the spectacle.

"Well…" Ginny said quickly, "I… have somewhere to be."

A flash of hurt crossed Harry's face briefly, caught only by the stunned Exorcists whose minds could not process anything but the scene in front of them. "R-right… I should… study for Potions. Homework."

And, just like that, the three displaced time-travellers were left in a mostly empty common room.

"So…" Allen cleared his throat nervously as Timcanpy rolled back to sit on its four legs. "I think that went well, didn't it?"

Lenalee sighed and shook her head. "As well as we could expect. Now they know about Timcanpy, though, and…"

"But our secret is still safe!" Allen prompted. "Right?"

"…Right."

That short pause had not gone unnoticed; Allen frowned, wondering what it could mean. Had it been revealed already and Lenalee was hiding that fact from him? (And Lavi? Or did Lavi know too?!) Was Lenalee just worried that this was the first step towards a now-inevitable conclusion?

"…It'll be all right, though, Allen-kun," Lenalee added, sensing his discomfort. "Now that I can do magic, why would anyone suspect us? Why would a witch arrive with a pair of Muggles? And if that fails, I can learn-"

"That's great, Lenalee." Allen was smiling, his eyes nearly closed and crinkling at the corners, yet after knowing him for nearly a year Lenalee could sense his underlying discomfort easily.

"Allen-kun…?" she began.

"I'll take Timcanpy to my room now, all right?" he continued. "You should… you have to practise spells, right? Professor McGonagall said that."

"Yeah," Lenalee nodded. "See you later, Allen-kun…?"

Still smiling, Allen gave a noncommittal shrug and left Lenalee alone to her worried thoughts.

"Should I not have said anything about this at all, Allen-kun?" she mused aloud, watching his departing back. "You seemed so happy for me earlier… Why won't you tell me when something's wrong, Allen-kun?"

* * *

And so the months passed. Snow covered the ground as November became December, the days quickly fading into darkness as the shortest day of the year approached. Allen couldn't help but be reminded of Lenalee every time he saw the sun set during an afternoon class; he mentioned it to Lavi once, expecting laughter from the prankster, but the Bookman apprentice had merely looked thoughtful and nodded without saying a word. If Allen was spouting metaphors that Lavi appreciated, something had to be wrong.

Yet it was undoubtedly true. Ever since she discovered her talent for magic, Lenalee had been working hard to raise her skills to the sixth-year level. This was often accomplished by continuing her late-night practice sessions, the intensity draining Lenalee's energy to the point where her classmates had to literally drag her out of bed and into the Great Hall where she'd fall asleep yet again. More than once had Allen had to wipe pieces of egg off Lenalee's face or nudge her away from impaling herself on a fork. Lenalee had quickly seen the sense in changing her schedule, which, although it kept her awake during the day, now left very little time for anything else. In between classes, or meals, Lenalee would find an empty classroom and settle down for some intensive practising.

As a result, even Lenalee's meals were rushed, and they were the only time Allen saw her anymore. Lavi had the advantage of seeing her in the History of Magic classes every few days, although fortunately, he was wise enough not to gloat about this to Allen. It was painfully obvious to everyone who knew the boy that he missed his friend, the one whom he could spend evenings with in Gryffindor Tower or do his homework with in the library. (As expected, Allen's marks plummeted almost immediately.)

Still, the practice had paid off, and by the time the term ended Lenalee's skills were very nearly up-to-date with the rest of her year's. The professors had, after witnessing a demonstration of just how far she'd come – even learning non-verbal spells, a task made easier without the years of experience other students had to forget for such an accomplishment – decided to allow her entry into the three classes she'd so hoped to become a part of. Once January began, in just a few short weeks, Lenalee would adopt an entirely new schedule.

As if to make up for any time together she'd missed, most of her breaks now coincided with Allen's. A fortunate coincidence indeed!

Christmas was only a few days into the holidays, but until then, Lenalee had been asked to continue her studies. It was a small sacrifice, and it allowed her normal amounts of time to eat and sleep, but it was hardly enough time to make up any time missed with Allen and Lavi. By the beginning of the holidays, though, there was a more pressing matter: Christmas itself. With the help of a catalog and a fortunate trip to Hogsmeade before school ended – one where Allen could have sworn he'd seen a supposedly-absent Lenalee – the young Exorcist was assured of his friends' happiness come Christmas. He had the perfect gifts for them…

And so, as Christmas Eve came and passed, Allen fell asleep with the wonderful knowledge that the days to come would be full of nothing but happy times with his friends…

…and awoke the next morning to a suffocating pressure on his body.

"Wha-"

"Allen-kun! You're awake?"

Was it… It couldn't be… It had been so long since he'd heard that voice say more than a few clipped sentences…

"Lena…lee?"

It took all of his effort to crack one eyelid open to check if this was real or just a hallucination caused by Lenalee-deprivation.

"Good morning, Allen-kun! Merry Christmas!"

Hallucination. Had to be. Of course his mind would present the fantasy of being woken up by a Lenalee who was smiling so beautifully that-

-but if this wasn't real, why did he feel as if something was forcing all the air out of his lungs? He couldn't be dreaming _that_!

"What…" Allen gasped in a vain attempt to inflate the air sacs. "Lena… you…"

"Oh! I'm crushing you, aren't I!? I'm so sorry!" Lenalee promptly scrambled off his blanket-covered chest, where she'd apparently made a seat for herself, and settled on the bed next to him. "I didn't realise…"

"It's fine!" Allen inhaled deeply, enjoying the feeling of cold air rushing down his throat. He'd missed it… not as much as he'd missed Lenalee, but he'd prefer not to have to decide between the two. "I'm just happy to see you after…"

"Of course," Lenalee mumbled, turning away from Allen briefly. He frowned; was she unhappy about something? Or…

"Lenalee?" he prompted. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing!" she said quickly… a bit _too_ quickly. "Your choice of words… A-anyway!" Lenalee glanced around Allen's dormitory, eyes lingering on the empty, perfectly-made beds against the walls. "What happened to everyone?"

"They all went home for the Christmas holidays," Allen explained, mind still distracted by Lenalee's earlier dismissal. What had she meant by his word choice? "To their families…"

Lenalee nodded absently. "All the other Gryffindor sixth-years, too…"

There was a somewhat uncomfortable silence caused by, Allen realised belatedly, by the fact that neither of them were able to do such a thing. Lenalee wasn't able to return to her family for this Christmas… and while Allen didn't have any, he surely wouldn't have been left alone on such an occasion. The Order celebrated everything together as one big family… as 'home'.

"Well, we have each other, right?" he said, stretching his lips into a nervous smile as he moved into a sitting position. "The three of us are probably more than… more than some…"

"And we're hardly the only ones staying at Hogwarts for Christmas," Lenalee agreed. "I think a couple of students stayed this year because of that war. Something about Hogwarts being safer than home…" She trailed off to look back at the door, preoccupied.

"Lenalee?" Allen's head tilted to the side unconsciously. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing… just wondering…" The violet gaze flickered up to the clock above the door. "It's already ten-thirty…"

"And…?"

"Well…" Lenalee fidgeted nervously, hands wringing around the bedcovers below her. "Actually, I asked Lavi to meet you here… I gave him the password in class, and it hasn't changed since then…"

"Here?" Allen's eyebrows shot up. "Like… in my bedroom?! Why not in the Great Hall?"

"That's…" Lenalee's eyes wandered yet again, although now it seemed as if she was trying not to look at something roughly in the direction of… the foot of his bed…

Aha! As Allen straightened up to look around his friend and over the bedframe, a flash of red caught his eye. Could it be-

"What's that?" he asked innocently. The dark-haired Exorcist followed his gaze, her eyes widening and face freezing in a mask of fear when the bit of red ribbon peeking over the edge came into her vision. A nearly inaudible gasp escaped from her throat.

"It's nothing, Allen-kun," she tried to assure him, but it was too late. Allen's silver eyes met hers with a suspicious glint.

"Lenalee," he said slowly and seriously, "was Lavi supposed to dress up as Father Christmas?"

She couldn't believe her ears. "_What?_" He had to be joking. No way could Allen actually believe-

"There's something red, right? So it must be a costume… unless you went through my suitcase for clothing," he added, laughing nervously. In a worried tone, he added, "Please tell me you didn't."

"…It isn't what you think it is," Lenalee said honestly.

"A costume?"

"For Lavi. It's not that."

A scared expression spread across Allen's face. "You don't… you're not thinking of making _me_ wear it?! With the hair and-"

Allen was cut off as the navy blue gift bag tied with red ribbon hit him across the face.

"I think Lavi will forgive me for starting _early_," Lenalee muttered to herself. "Open it!"

"Is it a-"

"It's a present, Allen-kun!"

Allen stared at the present he now held in his lap, not moving a muscle. It was almost as if he'd never…

"Allen-kun," Lenalee said slowly, "do you mean you haven't…"

"I have!" Allen said defensively. "I know you give them on Christmas, so…"

Lenalee opened her mouth to comment on Christmas with Cross before the memory of recent events made her change the topic instead. Cross's fate was still unknown, but from what Lenalee had heard, it didn't look good for the General. Of course, unless he'd used a spell to transport himself into the future, he'd be dead _now_ no matter what had happened.

…but that was hardly a pleasant thing to think about on a day like this!

"Open it," she prompted. "This… isn't actually a present; it's… well, you'll see, I suppose." Her face coloured at that, and she turned her face away, watching Allen carefully untie the bow holding the top of the bag together out of the corner of her eye.

Allen opened the bag and withdrew a series of tissue-wrapped bundles gently, placing the bag on the floor next to him. He stared at the items for a few moments, bemused. "What is it?" They seemed oddly light, not something like the thick, warm material of a costume…

"Just open them, Allen-kun." Lenalee couldn't suppress the smile on her face as he gently tugged aside the folds of paper to reveal…

"Clothing? So it _was_…" Allen trailed off as he withdrew the first item: a black hoodie. "What…"

"I hope they fit," Lenalee wondered aloud, the excitement barely contained in her voice. "I asked Lavi to check the sizes for me; the orders were sent in all at once, and they only just arrived two days ago-"

"Orders?" As Allen stared at Lenalee, more than a little confused, he realised for the first time that she was wearing something other than the usual black robes or Exorcist coat and skirt that he was used to seeing her in. Rather, Lenalee was clothed in a short burgundy dress, the cut reminiscent of the vaguely Chinese-inspired dresses she had a fondness for back at the Order. A dark gray sweater was tied loosely around her waist; the fireplaces in the dormitories provided a delightful warmth, but she would certainly need that covering in the hallways. "Did you… is that new?"

Lenalee nodded, blushing happily at the attention. "They're Muggle clothes, Allen-kun. At least, they're what everyone wears nowadays… everyone our age."

"You wear things like that all the time," Allen pointed out. "The dress, at least…"

"…but that's just me." Lenalee was temporarily at a loss for words, stunned by the fact that Allen apparently noticed what she wore. An English gentleman indeed! "Yours are a bit more different."

They were, Allen discovered when he unwrapped the other packages. The black pants were nothing new – although really, how much could formal pants change in a century? – and he easily recognized the thin black belt coiled up on top of them, but neither shirt he received looked anything like the sort of thing he was used to wearing… excluding uniforms, of course.

"How do I wear these?" Allen asked Lenalee, holding them up in front of him, one per hand. He stared blankly first at the loose black t-shirt, then at the short-sleeved red garment. "One at a time?"

"The black one goes under the other," Lenalee explained. "You can leave it open, or closed – yes, I know it's a bit strange, Allen-kun, but that's…"

"And Lavi's going to be dressed like this too?" Allen asked incredulously.

"…Not quite. He picked out his own outfit," Lenalee murmured. "I thought this was similar to what you usually wear, minus the vest, so… I'm sorry, I should probably have asked-"

"No, it's fine, Lenalee." Allen smiled warmly at her, genuinely grateful for the gift. "I'm happy that you put so much thought into this, and…" He took a deep breath, feeling more than a bit embarrassed at the words. "I really like them. Thank you."

"You're welcome." Lenalee beamed back at him. After a few moments of silence, she started collecting the pieces of tissue paper in her hands. "You should get dressed now – I'll leave in a moment; what if Lavi got lost, I'll go look…"

"Okay." Allen nodded happily as Lenalee scrambled off the bed. For the first time, he noticed she was wearing tall black boots similar to her Innocence, with the red rings around her ankles accenting them nicely. Idly, he wondered if Lenalee had picked out any- ah, yes, a pair of soft black shoes with thick laces. Completely unfamiliar, but they did look comfortable. And black socks, too! Not that he didn't have those – socks hadn't changed at _all_ – but it showed that she really had thought of everything.

As Allen reached for the shoes, his eyes fell on a piece of black fabric he hadn't noticed before…

"Oh, before you go, Lenalee…" She turned around, and Allen picked up the material and dangled it in the air. "This is probably a silly question, because it looks familiar, but I can't quite… What's this?"

At the sight of the item, Lenalee's face turned an amusing shade of red.

"L-Lavi picked those!" she managed to choke, the lie unfortunately revealed in her embarrassment. "I-I don't… w-why would I… label goes in back!"

And with that, she beat a hasty retreat out the door, leaving Allen to figure out what article of clothing it was. (Thankfully, he figured it out with moments, to his embarrassment.)

Evidently, Lenalee really _had_ thought of _everything_…

Fortunately, the departure gave Allen a chance to prepare his own gift for Lenalee, something he'd been worried about having to do in front of her (therefore ruining the surprise). Once dressed, he slid off the bed and fell to his knees beside it, sliding his luggage out from underneath.

There it was, nestled on top of some plastic bags separating it from his Exorcist uniform (and Timcanpy's current home): his present for Lenalee. Allen gently scooped it up and tucked it into the pocket on the front of his hooded shirt, secretly grateful to Lenalee for unwittingly giving him the means to deliver her unwrapped present. His movements slowed as he closed the lid and pushed the case back under the bed, careful not to disturb the gift.

As Allen straightened, movements careful and deliberate yet seeming unnatural in their execution, Timcanpy fluttered over from where it had been sleeping on his pillow and plopped down in the mess of white hair.

"Good morning, Tim," Allen said cheerfully. "And Merry Christmas to you."

The golem yawned sleepily and gave Allen an affectionate snuggle.

Lenalee was waiting alone in the Gryffindor common room when Allen, the rest of his presents in hand, descended the stairs; a few students drifted through in a small cluster as he entered, but there was no sign of Lavi's red hair. "What happened to Lavi?" Allen asked her as she came over to meet him at the stairs. "Did he show up at all?"

The older Exorcist shook her head. "He must've overslept," she said, sighing. "I suppose we'll meet him in the Great Hall – is that where we'll be…" She nodded at the gifts in his hands.

"Does that sound all right?" Allen asked, a bit sheepishly. Lenalee nodded.

"I'll have to get mine, though – we were originally supposed to exchange them in your room, since you can't enter mine and Lavi's is so far away, but…" She shrugged. "Do you mind waiting a few minutes, then?"

"Not at all!" Allen chirped, moving to settle down on a cushy chair as Lenalee dashed off up the stairs to her dormitory. Watching her go, he was consciously aware of the warm presence on his stomach. If everything could just go perfectly until he could give it to her, if accidents could be avoided… it'd be a Christmas miracle indeed.

The boy was startled out of these thoughts at Lenalee's return. "Let's go to the Great Hall together, then, all right?" she asked, slightly out of breath from the trip and from the apparently heavy presents in her arms. "We might… meet Lavi there."

As they approached the portrait, Allen abruptly lifted one or two of the larger packages out of her arms. "I'll carry those," he murmured with a reassuring smile. "Since you can barely see over them…"

Lenalee looked as if she were about to protest, but she soon closed her mouth and shook her head, smiling warmly. "Thank you, Allen-kun. You _are_ such a gentleman, whether you're using polite speech or not."

Polite…? He'd been slipping again! "Such kind words," he said softly, bobbing his head. The reserved, courteous response, however, sounded almost like self-mockery in his mouth, something Allen noticed only after Lenalee began to giggle and reached out to pat him gently on the shoulder.

"Remember, though, there _are_ no gentleman in this… place. Except for you, evidently."

"Is that bad?" Allen's eyes widened. "You mean…"

"You don't sound like a stuffy grandfather, if that's what you're thinking!" Yet the upward quirk in Lenalee's lips only made Allen worry even more. She hadn't denied it – no, she'd even said once that she liked being informal – did that mean…

Allen suddenly realised that Lenalee had stopped and was giving the back of his head a suspicious look.

"I-is something wrong, Lenalee?"

The smile widened.

"Not at all, Allen-kun."

"But…"

"In case you were wondering…" For a moment, Lenalee's head turned downwards so her bangs obscured her expression. "I like being informal _with you_."

"L-like?!" Why was his face colouring at that- oh no, not _again_; she'd only said-

"…but that's because it means we're closer to the gentlemanly Allen-kun, you know?"

"Huh?!" _What does she-_

"Oh, it's already this late? What if Lavi's waiting for us?"

Lenalee quickly strode past a temporarily dumbstruck Allen, yet before he could move, she quickly flashed a bright smile over her shoulder. _Everything is great_, it seemed to say. _Let's go have a great day_.

Allen certainly intended to.

Underneath the heavy black material covering his stomach, something stirred.

* * *

Within moments, Allen had caught up to Lenalee and they made their way to breakfast. As she'd expected, Lavi was waiting for them just outside of the Great Hall, sheepishly smiling at them as the teenagers met. He too was dressed in modern Muggle clothing, vaguely similar to Allen's outfit only in dark green where his was black. (Allen couldn't help but wonder if Lenalee had bought the same thing for them both, down to the last tiny detail… A part of him hoped she hadn't. Then again, hadn't Lenalee said that Lavi was involved in the order too? Perhaps this was just a fortunate coincidence. Besides, he couldn't see what Lavi wore under the hoodie, so perhaps…)

"The Fat Lady wouldn't let me in," the red-haired Bookman apprentice explained at the doors. "She-"

"It's all right, Lavi," Allen told him. "We're here now, and we have…" He nodded, intending to gesture to the presents in his arms. "…We'll be exchanging them at breakfast, though, right?"

"Merry Christmas," Lenalee chirped from behind him. Allen echoed the sentiment.

"Merry Christmas to you too – yeah, I left them at the table." Lavi ran a hand through his thick red hair nervously. "Everyone's already begun to eat, though, so we might as well do that first…"

"Yes please!" Allen exclaimed. Next to him, Lenalee burst into giggles, amused at his enthusiasm.

"Then let's go," Lavi said dramatically, throwing open the doors to reveal the Great Hall. It was no surprise to any of the Exorcists, the Hall – and the rest of the corridors in Hogwarts – having been decorated days before, but Allen and Lenalee couldn't help but be awestruck for a few moments anyway. Twelve marvellously decorated Christmas trees, covered in frosty ornaments, glittered in the light of the faux winter sun. Garlands of holly and tinsel, similar to the ones that decorated the staircases but here set on a background of pine crossed the ceiling and adorned the walls, and all the surfaces were covered with sparkling enchanted snow. The Headmaster was leading a number of students in enthusiastic Christmas carols, and Allen thought he saw in the corner of his eye someone dressed as Father Christmas. (He immediately felt thankful it wasn't him.)

The Christmas dinner itself was spectacular, with enough delicious food to make even Allen feel as stuffed as the turkey even as the pudding was being served. Presents had been forgotten the moment the trio sat down at the Gryffindor table, placing the gifts on the floor almost haphazardly. As Lavi reached for a wizard cracker, though, Allen suddenly became highly aware of warmth on his stomach – and not from the meal.

"Let's open our gifts first, shall we, Lavi?" he asked, reaching out to pull the older boy's hand away from the crackers.

The red-haired Exorcist pouted, but agreed. He was the first to reach for the presents, depositing a blue-and-silver snowman-printed package on the table. "This one's for…" Lavi's grin widened as he checked the matching tag. "Me? You didn't have to, Lenalee!"

She rolled her eyes at Lavi's antics. "You took that one on purpose, didn't you?"

A green-and-gold gift was promptly shoved next to it by a gloved hand. "Open mine too," Allen said eagerly. "After Lenalee's."

"But then I'll have nothing left for later!" Lavi whined playfully, earning him a pair of equally teasing punches in the shoulder. "Except a sore arm!"

As it turned out, despite Allen and Lenalee having bought the gifts with no collaboration whatsoever, they complimented each other remarkably well.

"_The Impact of Magic on Muggle History: Volume One_ and _Famous Muggles Who Were Really Wizards_ – how did you ever come up with these?" Lavi grinned wryly and shook his head, bouncing the pair of leatherbound books in his hands. "Amazing. Thanks, you guys – these'll be _perfect_, and Binns doesn't cover this sort of thing. Thank you."

"I can't believe we almost got you the same thing," Allen said, smiling weakly at Lenalee before turning back to see Lavi flip open one of the books and scanning its pages. "I almost got you that first one, too…"

"Great minds think alike, or so they say," Lenalee quipped.

"Thank you," Lavi told them, gratitude heavy in his voice. "It'll be good to have something to read during classes when I've already covered the material, or…"

"Or when you don't want to sleep?" Allen muttered.

"That too," the older boy admitted.

Allen was the next to open his brightly wrapped presents. First was the one from Lavi, eager to share the Christmas spirit with someone else after opening his own. As before, Allen carefully picked off the tape holding the paper together and slid the item out, leaving the shape of the paper intact.

"You don't have to do that," Lavi pointed out. "We're getting this money from the Ministry, after all; there's no use in saving it."

"It might be useful," Allen said defensively. "Besides, it _is_ a monthly allowance."

"And you're going to use it for Lenalee's birthday present?"

There was a moment of silent as Allen shook his head, a flush of embarrassment colouring his cheeks.

"…Look at the present, Allen-kun," Lenalee muttered, feeling more than a bit awkward at the conversation topic.

Everyone's eyes fell to the item in Allen's lap, a plain white cardboard box.

"Um…" Allen looked hesitantly at Lavi. "Is this…"

"It's inside," Lavi said, sounding mildly irritated.

The Exorcist pried his glove-covered fingernails under the sides of the box and flipped the top off to reveal a large glass spinning top about the size of a dessert plate. Almost immediately, the top lit up and began to whir with an increasingly loud-

"Thank you, Lavi," Allen laughed nervously, closing the box again. "It's… certainly quite interesting."

"Huh." The visible part of the junior Bookman's forehead was furrowed with frown lines. "I didn't think it'd do _that_."

"It's not supposed to?"

"I guess it is… Anyway, it's a Sneakoscope. Normal kind. They do that when someone nearby is untrustworthy."

"Like you?" Allen said flatly.

"Hey!"

"Cheating students," Lenalee suggested quickly.

Allen nodded slowly, thankful for the interruption. "Again, thank you very much, Lavi," he said, this time with greater warmth and gratitude. "This will be very useful in the future."

"You're such a trusting person you might need it," Lavi pointed out with a grin. "Not that you're a bad judge of character – this might warn you about shady characters, though. Eh?" He leaned forward suddenly, eye focusing on Lenalee. "Is everything all-"

"Absolutely," Lenalee said brightly, nodding. "It won't warn Allen-kun about himself, right?"

"It shouldn't…" Yet Lavi looked almost doubtful.

"Well, we'll see when the time comes," Allen finished. He placed the box on the floor beside him, giving it a pleased look before he straightened up and thanked Lavi yet again.

Next was Lenalee's present, housed in a small box barely bigger than Timcanpy. Allen once again removed the wrapping without a single tear to reveal a rectangular black leather case. His name was stitched into the material in silver thread.

"Open it," Lenalee urged him. Allen unzipped the top end and reached inside to find…

"A deck of cards?" They seemed normal enough, although the design on the backs of the cards was a silver cross vaguely resembling the Rose Cross.

"Not quite…" Lenalee struggled to explain their purpose, embarrassment at her choice of gift evidently holding her back. "They're… not normal cards…"

"They've been enchanted?!" Lavi leaned over and ran a thumb over the edge of the cards. "They seem normal to me…"

"The owner can't lose," Lenalee muttered, flushing in embarrassment. "I- I know cheating is wrong, but Allen-kun's debts are a problem, and…"

"Thank you, Lenalee!" Although Allen was smiling brightly, a shiver of fear ran down the other Exorcists' spines. That cheerfulness didn't quite translate to the rest of his face, which promised painful losses to anyone who dared cross him. "I will use these as often as I can to prove my appreciation!"

"He's gone like _that_ again…" Lavi whispered behind Allen's back. Lenalee's eyes darted fearfully to the boy, then back to Lavi.

"Is it okay?!"

"Fine, he's fine. Just don't play poker with him."

The cards were placed back in their case and Allen happily tucked it up his sleeve. "Really, thank you so much, Lenalee. I may be good at poker, but with this, I could play _anything_ and win."

"Just don't let the Sneakoscope catch you," Lavi warned.

"I won't! I'll keep these for special occasions."

Lenalee nodded, humming a pleased note, when she noticed a flash of brightness on the floor… a piece of wrapping paper had fallen, probably from one of Lavi's gifts. As she bent down to retrieve it, a slight movement near Allen's stomach suddenly caught her eye. "Hey, Allen-kun… your stomach…"

Allen blinked, startled, before following her gaze to the shifting material.

"Is everything all right?" she asked, concerned. "You weren't hit by a stray spell and-"

Alarm bells suddenly went off in Allen's head as he remembered what he was keeping there. "T-Timcanpy," he reassured her. "Tim's in there."

Lenalee nodded, breathing a sigh of relief. "Okay." The affirmation almost made Allen mimic her sigh; she hadn't noticed his untruth.

Finally, the only gift left on the floor was Lenalee's. Allen didn't miss her quizzical and slightly disappointed look when she noticed it was from Lavi, and felt an irrational pang of guilt; how was Lenalee to know at this point that he _couldn't_ wrap his present and had been forced to hide it from her sight altogether? At least there was some small comfort in knowing she'd receive it momentarily.

The gold-and-violet paper gave way to reveal a… book, as expected of Lavi! It turned out to be dedicated to the baking and decorating of a number of desserts, with the emphasis on cakes. Lenalee's face lit up the moment she opened it to the first page, which held a picture of a magnificent, two-tiered chocolate cake decorated with sugary curls and marzipan flowers.

"Thank you, Lavi!" she gasped, barely able to contain her excitement. "Oh, if only I could use the kitchens here…"

"It's worth asking," Lavi shrugged, looking as pleased with her reaction as he had when receiving his own gifts… or was he still feeling the effects of that? "Glad you like it!"

An awkward silence fell, in which Allen realised this was the time to present his _own_ gift to Lenalee.

"Um…" The white-haired boy glanced nervously at Lenalee, then at Lavi. At this moment, Allen felt somewhat conflicted. On one hand, the longer he waited here like this, the more the butterflies flying in his nervous stomach intensified in number. Yet at the same time, he worried about upstaging Lavi if Lenalee liked his more…

…but what if she didn't?!

"It's all right, Allen-kun," Lenalee said suddenly. "It's nice to know I have such a good friend here with me on Christmas, and…"

The butterflies plunged into the pit that had opened at the sight of Lenalee's fake smile, masking the disappointment beneath it. Sitting next to her, Allen could see tears pricking the edges of her breathtakingly deep eyes. This wasn't the time to worry about her reaction to his gift! All she wanted was a sign that he'd been thinking of her-

-and he had, of course, more than she probably knew. _That _was what Lenalee needed the most: companionship; her friends; to not be alone… Of course she'd love his gift; that's what it was about! This was the only way to tell her how much he thought of her and _about_ her!

"I-I forgot something in my dormitory; I'll be-"

"Wait!"

Lenalee was half out of her chair when she spun around, startled. Even Lavi looked surprised.

"I… I didn't forget! I just couldn't wrap my present!"

Lavi's shocked look turned lecherous. "So it's _that_ kind, eh, Allen? Thinking Christmas Day is the perfect time to…"

"No!" Allen blushed deeply, and he noticed reddened cheeks on Lenalee, too. "It's not…"

"…with all the mistletoe around, are you sure?" Lavi waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "And you were planning to wait until nighttime when-"

"_It's right here_," Allen grumbled, reaching into his sweater. Lavi almost choked when the pair of gloved hands disappeared.

"You're _not_ going to-"

"Allen-kun, what are you-"

Everyone was silenced when Allen withdrew what he'd been carrying around for nearly two hours and, thanks to some miracle, had been completely still the entire time. The quiet was soon broken by Lenalee's delighted squeal.

It was a tiny Siamese kitten, barely bigger than Timcanpy, with enormous blue eyes staring balefully at Lenalee.

"Allen-kun, is this…"

He nodded. "This is your Christmas present, Lenalee."

And with that, Allen deposited the kitten into her awaiting hands.

"It's…" Lenalee was at a loss for words. "It's so…"

"Cute?" Lavi suggested.

Lenalee nodded, staring dumbstruck at the warm ball of fur in her hands. "What's it's name?"

"Ah…" Allen bit his lip nervously and inhaled sharply through his teeth, making a faint hissing sound. "I don't know. It doesn't have one, I guess."

"Is it a boy or a girl kitten?" she asked, gently holding the kitten vertically under its front legs to check. "Um…"

"I think the shopkeeper said it was a female," Allen admitted. "He also said she's about ten weeks old…"

"She's absolutely adorable," Lenalee cooed, letting the kitten sink down and curl up again in her slightly spread hands. Slowly, she moved the baby to her lap, where it nestled in the material of her dress. This left Lenalee's hands free, one of which she used to gently stroke the kitten's head and back. Allen almost thought he could hear a faint purr.

"She's got a lovely temperament," Lavi commented, a soft look in his green eye.

"Can I name her, then?" Lenalee asked Allen. "Or would you like to?"

"Eh?! S-she's your kitten, so you should…" Allen ducked his head, looking momentarily uneasy. "Besides, I'm sure Lenalee will come up with the best name for her…"

"Okay," Lenalee nodded, a determined look set on her face. "I'll think about it as we eat the pudding."

"Pudding!" Allen's attention was immediately directed away from the tiny fuzzball, and everyone else soon followed suit. The pudding was, of course, delicious, like the rest of the food set out on the table for them.

Slowly, students began to trickle out of the Great Hall, and the three Exorcists were among the last to leave. As they stood up from the table, gathering their Christmas presents into their arms (Allen took Lenalee's book as her arms were filled with the kitten), the young witch suddenly gasped.

"Lenalee!" The boys whirled around. "Is everything-"

"Her name! I thought of the perfect name!" Lenalee beamed at the kitten and gave it a gentle scratch under the chin. "Jeanette. Her name is Jeanette… don't you think?"

"It's cute," Allen murmured.

"What he said," Lavi added with a sideways nod to Allen.

Jeanette mewed her soft agreement.

"Perfect," Lenalee mused.

As they turned to leave, Lavi tapped Allen on the shoulder and gestured to the table, where a plate of unopened wizard crackers lay. The older boy raised his eyebrows and they exchanged mischievous grins. Now that the presents had been opened, it had become clear that Allen had prevented their use to avoid waking Jeanette… but what was stopping them now?

They returned to Gryffindor Tower with heavier pockets and having left empty plates behind.

* * *

"Here." Allen had just looked up from playing with his new deck of cards when a scratchy green thing hit him in the face. Lenalee was standing in the doorway leading to the girls' dormitories, holding something in her arms. "This is part of your new outfit too, Allen-kun."

"You didn't have to _throw_ them, Lenalee," came a whine from Lavi. A similar-looking article lay in his lap. Allen picked up the one Lenalee had hit him in the face with; it was a long, green, winter trench-coat.

"Thank you, Lenalee," he said appreciatively. "Are we going out later, then?"

She nodded. "Since the weather's nice, I thought maybe…" Her arms unfolded and Allen noticed she was holding a coat too; the design was similar except for its white colour, although the garment was obviously made for a woman.

"We could have a snowball fight," Lavi suggested, already shrugging into his coat. Allen immediately noticed that Lenalee had bought them a size larger than usual, probably so the boys could fit their hoodies under it. Certainly, the weather would be cold outside and they'd need the extra layer… but then…

"Lenalee," he said slowly, "won't you be cold out there? With just a light sweater below your coat, and in a miniskirt…"

"I'll be fine," she chirped. "I've gone with less back home, after all."

Lavi choked and immediately grinned suggestively; Allen smacked him with a handy pillow.

"You should be worried, Lavi," Lenalee pointed out. "If we _do_ have a snowball fight, you'll stand out the most."

"Wh- _oh_." Lavi's stunned gaze darted between Lenalee and Allen. "That's not fair! You've got camoflauge!"

"I can't help it!" Allen exclaimed. "Besides, I've got a dark coat too!"

"You'll have to bury yourself in the snow, then," Lenalee told him, grinning. "Who'll be cold _then_?"

"Are you sure, Lenalee?" The white-haired boy frowned. "Even if you say it's all right…"

"I'm used to it by now. You boys never walk around in bare legs – not even in the summer! – so you wouldn't understand." She gave Allen a reassuring smile. "So put your coat on, pack that present away, and let's go!"

The trio traipsed outside to the Hogwarts grounds, where, although paths to places like Hogsmeade or Professor Hagrid's hut had been cleared, the snow was at least a metre high. It was perfect for whatever activity the students wished, and, as the Exorcists discovered, they were hardly the only ones to take advantage of the lovely weather. After a ten-minute search, they finally found a patch of undisturbed snow by the lake and began building fortresses for their mini-war.

It was not long before a breathless Allen, hair damp from snow, dashed behind the walls of Lenalee's base and collapsed, panting. Beside his head, Timcanpy fluttered frantically.

"I… partner with me?" he breathed hopefully. "I can't hold up anymore."

Lenalee risked a peek over the ridged wall to find Allen's snow-fort, on the verge of collapsing from all the holes in its structure. She coloured in embarrassment; Lavi wasn't solely responsible for the damage.

A ball of white came flying towards her head and she ducked down below, facing Allen's weary grey eyes. The proper answer would have been 'no'; wasn't he supposed to give up if he surrendered? – but somehow, looking into those warm depths, she just couldn't refuse him. And besides, wouldn't this mean that Allen couldn't enjoy the activity with them anymore?

"Okay," she told him. "But you're going to help me beat Lavi, right?"

Allen nodded furiously, already creeping up next to her with a tightly packed ball in his gloved hands.

Lavi didn't stand a chance against the pair of them: as one pelted him with snowballs, the other reinforced the base. As the structure collapsed completely on the poor boy, Lenalee and Allen broke down in laughter.

"We… we win!" Lenalee gasped, clasping her hands around Allen's and twirling around in circles. Only the sturdiness of Allen's stance kept her from falling backwards onto her bottom.

"…Yeah." Allen nodded. Even through two layers of gloves, he could feel the warmth of her hands.

"Hey, are you two done with the snuggling over there?" came the muffled voice of Lavi. "Come over 'ere and dig me out!"

"We don't help the losers!" Lenalee laughed, sticking her tongue out playfully, but she released Allen anyway and the pair made their way over to the pile of freshly ruffled snow. Lavi hadn't been buried deep; his fortress had been barely high enough to cover him, and soon, the trio became engaged in simply rolling around in the white material and having fun. It wasn't something they often had the opportunity to do, not with missions to do, or magic to study, and a small part of each of them worried that they'd forgotten the ability entirely. Yet the activity was certainly _fun_; no one could deny that!

For a day, they were just three teenagers with not a care in the world.

"Ack!" Allen squirmed uncomfortably, half submerged under a snowdrift. "I think there's some in my shoe… it's all cold and wet…" He fidgeted, evidently trying to grab the offending shoe. "If I can just get it off-"

"Then your sock will be wet, too," Lenalee pointed out, leaning across from her snow prison to ruffle his hair affectionately. "We'll get dried off inside; don't worry about it right now."

His expression sobered. "Aren't you cold, Lenalee? Your legs…"

Lenalee wasn't sure if she could feel them anymore, but Allen didn't need to know that. He'd only worry about her instead of having fun, and how could she enjoy herself knowing that? "I'm fine, Allen-kun. Used to it, remember?"

A slow yet somewhat unconvinced smile spread across Allen's face. He knew the truth. "If you say so, Lenalee."

She returned the gesture, and for a moment they sat there doing nothing more until Lenalee felt a faint rustling at her chest. "Ah…" One hand dove into her coat – Allen averted his eyes automatically – to produce the cause. "Jeanette, are you all right? Not cold?"

The kitten mewed softly and snuggled back into her sweater.

"Is she…?" Allen trailed off, giving her a concerned look (Lenalee, not Jeanette; Allen was very careful not to take his eyes off Lenalee's face).

"She's fine," Lenalee assured him. "Perhaps a bit cold, but she's sharing my body warmth, so it can't be that bad for her."

"R-right…"

"Sharing Lenalee's body warmth, huh…" Lavi had snuck up from behind, and he proceeded to flop down on the snow in front of the pair on his stomach. "Hey, Allen, maybe you should try telling Lenalee you're cold. Maybe she'll let you…?"

"If I wasn't buried," Allen warned his friend, "I'd… I would… you'd be in trouble!"

"Oh, I'm _so_ scared." Lavi rolled his eyes and kicked his feet out in front of him, moving into a sitting position. "So – you having a fun day, Allen?"

The younger boy nodded. "Christmas hasn't been this fun since… in a long time."

"It's great that we can spend such a special day together," Lenalee murmured warmly.

"Yeah, especially for Allen – you didn't forget, right?" The red-haired boy grinned. "About what day it is?"

"…Christmas?" Allen said blankly.

Lenalee's eyebrows shot up above her bangs. "You really don't remember?" she whispered, horrified. "About…"

"…your _birthday_?" Lavi finished.

Allen's eyes darted between the two Exorcists, utterly bewildered. "It… it's my birthday!" he gasped in sudden realisation. "But a year hasn't-"

"Right day, though. Happy birthday!"

"We've got presents for that back in the castle," Lenalee added cheerfully. "They're not as elaborate or useful as the Christmas ones, but…"

At that moment, Allen's stomach rumbled, and he curled up sheepishly.

"I think you'll find it's something you need," Lavi told him with an exaggerated wink.

Indeed, it was the best gift for a starving Allen: boxes of Chocolate Frogs from both of them ("They were the only normal candy," Lenalee explained, and after hearing about the jellybeans, Allen felt even more grateful). The trio shared them happily as they sat in front of the fire, comparing and trading the collectable cards as Jeanette played with Timcanpy. The creatures, nearly identical in size, actually seemed to be getting along quite well!

"I think Timcanpy's starting to overcome his fear of cats," Allen mumbled between bites of chocolate, awestruck. "Until she grows up, anyway."

"I doubt she'll eat her childhood friend," Lenalee pointed out. Unconsciously, she shuffled a little closer to Allen, leaning her damp head on his shoulder. "Mmm, you're warm already, Allen-kun. Share the heat!"

"How?!" he asked playfully, glancing fearfully at an oblivious Lavi. If this conversation was overhead by _him_- "My hoodie's only big enough for one person!"

"Then…" Lenalee turned her head to glance at Lavi, engrossed by the tiny pets, without moving from Allen's shoulder. His head slowly dropped onto hers, remnants of snow dampening any bit that had just become dry. "What about Lavi?"

"What about me?" the older boy asked obliviously.

"Can I have your hoodie?" Lenalee asked innocently. "It's cold."

Lavi hesitated momentarily, then shook his head, sending water droplets flying onto the other Exorcists and the carpet. Unaware, Jeanette continued playing with Timcanpy. "You collapsed my fort on top of me and now you want my warmth?!"

The witch stuck her tongue out playfully. "Meanie."

A low rumble echoed through the small space. Three pairs of eyes (and one blank face) turned immediately to Allen.

"It wasn't me!" the boy protested. "Not this time!"

"We don't believe you," Lavi and Lenalee muttered. Timcanpy bobbed its body in agreement. Even Jeanette seemed unconvinced.

"Really!" Allen pouted, hurt. "Just because someone's hungry and it's time for tea-"

"So he admits it!" Lavi accused.

"No!" Allen waved his hands in front of him desperately. "It really wasn't me this time!"

"Then who?" Lenalee turned to look at Lavi, then at her kitten, then at Allen again. "Allen-kun did eat the most chocolate, but…"

The rumble was heard again, and this time, the source was clear.

"Ah…"

"Looks like _someone's_ been picking up more than gift ideas, hm?"

"Lenalee?!"

"I- I really didn't know!" Lenalee bounded to her feet, red-faced. "T-then shall we go?"

"I can't believe you accused me of that, Lenalee!"

"_Let's just go!_"

Tea was followed by even more relaxation – reading time in the Gryffindor common room. Lavi immediately opened to the first page of Lenalee's gift while she reciprocated by looking at the recipes in her own. Jeanette curled up sleepily on her new owner's lap, yawning sleepily every few minutes. Left to his own devices, Allen played a round of solitaire with his new card deck, and won, of course (he'd stuffed the Sneakoscope in his luggage earlier, anticipating its loud reaction). It was not long before he grew distracted, however, to Timcanpy's misfortune. By the time Lavi left for the night, the poor golem was as flat as a pancake.

"We should be going to sleep too," Lenalee murmured as the pair watched Lavi depart.

"But…" Allen glanced up at the clock hanging over the fireplace. It was reasonably late, and it _had_ been an exciting day for everyone, yet he couldn't help but wish it would last just a _bit_ longer. Even if Lavi wasn't around, he could still enjoy some time with Lenalee…

A sigh snapped Allen out of his thoughts; in the chair next to his, Lenalee was closing her book. "It's been a fun day, hasn't it, Allen-kun?"

Allen nodded, smiling wearily. _Lenalee sounds tired; she probably really wants to sleep…_

The dark-haired Exorcist didn't move, however; instead, she gave another tired sigh and leaned back in her chair to muse aloud. "You know… I almost thought… we might not all see Christmas together."

"Why?" The word escaped from Allen's mouth before he had the chance to rethink it. "That is… ah…"

"Because of what the Earl said, right?" Lenalee's lips twitched into a sad smile. "I thought this was the beginning of the end… that it would only be just a few more months and then… the end."

"The end?" Allen repeated, feeling a paralyzing fear streak down his back and making him shiver. "I-it'll be all right, Lenalee! We'll definitely-"

"And who would survive?" Lenalee whispered. "Even if everyone was safe… how could we stay together once this is all over? Surely, everyone will want to return to their former lives…"

"If they have anything to return to," Allen mumbled under his breath. He hadn't meant for Lenalee to hear, yet her sudden frown told him she had. "W-which isn't most people, of course-"

"You mean yourself, Allen-kun?" Lenalee sighed and stood to make her way over to Allen's wide chair. Her boot-encased feet made the softest of echoes as they touched the carpeted floor. "We'll do something about that," she told him, settling down on the cushioned arm. For a brief moment, Allen tensed at her presence. Just a _bit_ too close-

"Lenalee?" he murmured automatically.

"_You_, anyway…"

_We'll always be together._

"Hey… remember what I told you that day, Allen-kun?"

He nodded, the words echoing in his mind.

_I won't let this, or anything else, pull us apart._

"That's for the future too, right?" Lenalee's voice shook with uncertainty, though, as if waiting for his confirmation.

Allen took a deep breath. "I'd be really happy if we could spend another Christmas together in the future. The past, I mean," he answered. "One for our time."

"With everyone," Lenalee finished, one pale hand dropping down to rest on the black fabric of Allen's right sleeve. His grey eyes fell to it, then travelled up her arm and neck to meet those emotional violet eyes once again. "Right?"

"I promise." Allen lifted his left hand to cover hers, clasping it tightly. "That's my promise to you."

"Mmm… it's your birthday; shouldn't you be the one to receive a gift?"

"If Lenalee's happy," he told her honestly, "that's enough for me! …but if it makes you feel better," he added, "mitarashi dango are always accepted."

"I'll make you some when we get back," Lenalee laughed. "It doesn't feel like enough, though… it's your _birthday_, and you give me an even better present than-"

"It's fine!" Allen said quickly. "I've had a great day! That's all I need!"

Lenalee, however, was unconvinced. Allen had given her two of the best gifts she could ever hope to receive – a kitten companion and the promise of her perfect future – and the best she could repay him with was a cheating deck of cards and _chocolate_? And a pledge to make him mitarashi dango when they got back home, not that she wouldn't have made it for him anyway?

It all seemed so unfair, and Lenalee couldn't bear to receive more than she could give. It had been that way all her life; surely she could give Allen something more, for once…

Her thoughtful gaze wandered unconsciously around the room – unaware of a bemused Allen's eyes on her – yet nothing immediately came to mind. If she didn't think of something _now_, though, it'd have to wait until tomorrow and-

_There!_ Sucking in a deep breath through her teeth, violet eyes focused on a small thing in the corner of the common room. _Perhaps that_…

Yet what if Allen didn't-

No, there wasn't time for that! It would have to do. If things didn't work out, well, at least her worries and regret would take her mind off of what she hadn't promised. And Lenalee thought she knew Allen well enough by now to know that he _probably_ wouldn't… mind…

…but was _she_ really willing to do it, even for his sake? How did she feel about such a thing?

"Lenalee?" Allen asked, concern heavy in his voice. "Are you all right? You've been staring…" His head turned as he strained to see what Lenalee had discovered; only a swift flick of her wrist saved the situation as the item disappeared into the air. With a silent gasp, Lenalee realised the decision had been made; there was no going back now.

_I have to do this. It's for Allen-kun's sake, remember that. For Allen-kun. If it'll make him happy, I can-_

"Eh? There's nothing there- Lenalee, is everything okay?"

"It's fine, Allen-kun. In fact…" Lenalee smiled teasingly, showing none of the nervousness she felt, as her eyes briefly fluttered upwards then back to Allen's. "Maybe you should… look up?"

"Up?" Confusion coloured Allen's grey eyes. "Like…"

"Look up."

Lenalee kept her gaze trained on Allen's head as he raised his chin, straining to see what she was referring to.

"What do you mean, Lenalee? There's nothing…" Allen trailed off as the object suddenly came into view. "Ah…"

"Allen-kun?"

"N-nothing." The blush on Allen's face would have told Lenalee of his untruth had she not placed the object there herself. "There's nothing there, right? A-anyway, w-we really should be g-going…"

"Mmm… Allen-kun, you saw it, right?"

"S-saw w-what?"

"The mistletoe."

Allen choked and shook his head wildly. "Th-there's no mistletoe there!"

"Really?" Lenalee feigned surprise. "Then what is that thing above us, w-with the leaves and berries?"

"Um…" Allen was at a loss for words by now, mind full of unwanted thoughts about what one does with a partner under mistletoe. Lenalee had seen it… did that mean… "That's…"

"So…" Unable to contain the blush any longer, Lenalee could only be thankful that Allen couldn't hear her heart pounding loud enough to disturb her hearing. _Is this really the right decision? _"Since it's above us…"

Allen's eyes dropped to his lap. "We don't have to," he said quietly. Was it just Lenalee's mind or did he almost sound sad? "It was an accident, right? I… If Lenalee doesn't want to, it'll be all right if we ignore it, won't it?" Assuming there wasn't a special spell on magic mistletoe, that is. Yes, it would definitely be better for Allen if Lenalee ignored the fact; as much as that not-so-small part of him wanted this more than, well, anything else he could have in this time, it was still an embarrassing position to be in. After all, how could he force Lenalee into this? Surely she wouldn't want to... to do such a thing! Not with him!

There was no way she would feel quite as strongly as he did. Wouldn't he have noticed by now?!

A brief silence fell as Allen contemplated the matter, made possible by the state of chaos Lenalee's mind had been thrown into at Allen's words. He'd… had he just…

Yes - he'd as good as rejected her present (unintentionally, but it was still a rejection). Yet Lenalee could almost feel her heartbeat speed up at the way in which he'd done it. Such a gentlemanly comment could hardly fail to warm even the most icy woman's heart! Did he really care so much for her feelings, though, or did he just want a way out?

On the other hand, however, that sentence could easily be interpreted in another way – as a desire for confirmation of _her_ feelings on the matter before Allen opened his vulnerable heart to her. Why else would he have sounded disappointed?! If he truly did not want this, wouldn't he be hopeful instead? And yet…

_Don't you see, Lenalee? Allen's given you a way out! You're not comfortable with it – you don't need to do this!_

Exactly; Allen had given her something _yet again_, or he would if she accepted the opportunity. Hadn't she created this situation to let Allen be the recipient for once?! This would go against everything she'd just decided!

Yet she really wasn't sure…

Best to take the decision out of her hands entirely.

"But what do _you_ think is right, Allen-kun?" she murmured, the sound so soft it was almost a purr. "This is your decision to make."

"I…" Allen was snapped out of his negative thoughts by Lenalee's question. "I want what _you_ want, Lenalee."

A nerve twitched invisibly at the corner of one violet eye. This indecisiveness was actually something of an irritating, if endearing, quality…

"It's Allen-kun's birthday, though."

"Eh… w-well… t-that's t-true, but…" Allen's slightly tanned, scarred face abruptly took on a deep red colour she'd seen quite often in recent months. "I don't want to force you to do anything, Lenalee… T-that's such an intimate gesture, and-"

"If you don't want it," Lenalee said, sighing, "then just say it, Allen-kun. It's _your_ choice." She reached out to stroke his cheek affectionately with her free hand unconsciously. "I don't mind if-"

"I didn't say that!" Allen's eyes widened at his sudden exclamation. "T-that is, I… it's not that I _don't_ want it, but…" The blush darkened. "…it's…"

_Did I just say that I did want it?__! Shit, shitshitshit, what if Lenalee-_

Allen wasn't the only one to notice the misstep; Lenalee's muscles tensed as soon as the words sunk into her mind. So Allen _did_ want this. That meant she had to-

_For Allen-kun's sake._

"…but that's not to say that I _do_, not if Lenalee doesn't-"

…_but really_, Lenalee thought as she leaned in closer to silence Allen's frantic rambling, _I'm starting to think… I might not really mind at all._

The last thought Allen had before the soft touch of Lenalee's lips wiped his mind blank was one that, in retrospect, was rather embarrassing: _Huh? _For a few moments, he simply stared at Lenalee in shock, unable to remove his gaze from her face and barely noticing how her eyelids slit shut to break off any eye contact they might have had. At the lack of reaction, she instinctively pressed harder against his unmoving lips, anxiously awaiting his response.

Would Allen kiss her back as she knew he wanted to do? Or would inexperience, politeness, and a fear of opening his heart to anyone cause him to withdraw?

She _knew_ she didn't want that.

_Please, Allen-kun_, Lenalee thought as she gently tried to pry his mouth open with soft flicks of her tongue, _don't do this. Don't be afraid._

And, as if her thoughts had somehow magically reached him, Allen slowly relaxed. His eyes closed unconsciously as lips parted, allowing Lenalee to gently explore the wet, unfamiliar territory. Inexperience rendered Allen otherwise immobile, though, not even allowing him to make a move in response to her slight aggression. Frustrated, Lenalee nudged his tongue with hers in an attempt to provoke some sort of action.

_Allen-kun! Don't be like this, always letting things happen to you just so someone else won't get hurt! Please…_

Lenalee was on the verge of tears now, desperation forcing her to continue her assault with renewed energy. Finally, she felt a soft and gentle pressure; it was just the tiniest of movements, but the knowledge that Allen had responded made her heart lift. Harsh prodding became gentle stroking, encouraging Allen to repeat his earlier behaviour. Soon, she'd engaged him in a sort of dance, guiding his motions as they grew steadily more powerful. Even though neither had any experience in this sort of thing, Lenalee's more forceful and open personality made her the dominant partner, yet that role was quickly blurred. It was not long before both their actions had become perfectly coordinated as if they'd been doing this all their lives with each other instead of starting just a few minutes ago.

It felt like an eternity had passed when Lenalee withdrew, inhaling deeply once her mouth was free before placing a chaste kiss on Allen's parted lips and pulling back to face him, red-faced. One hand reached unconsciously to her fluttering heart; what had she been thinking, kissing him like that?! She should have… should have… done exactly what she did, Lenalee thought as she tried to piece the fragments of her shattered mind together.

_That was… __I didn't expect it to be quite so… so… emotional…_

Allen was in no better position, unable to make _any_ sense of what had just happened. When Lenalee had finally managed to form a complete sentence in her mind, she found he hadn't moved at all since she'd pulled back; his mouth was half-open, a strand of saliva trailing from his lower lip – a part of her almost thought of pulling out a handkerchief and wiping it away like a mother would for a small child – and his tongue rested on his front teeth, poking at his lower lip. It was not until he became aware of Lenalee's curious and worried stare that Allen snapped out of his daze with a start. For a moment, he struggled to say something coherent, yet nothing came to mind. Fortunately, Lenalee also felt the need to break the silence.

"Happy birthday, Allen-kun," she said awkwardly.

"Thank you," Allen responded automatically. As if that brief exchange had pulled them down to reality, both instantly blushed a deep red. Lenalee turned her eyes away, too embarrassed at what she'd done to Allen to look at him, but she was painfully aware of his intense gaze on her. Somehow, he just couldn't look away…

"……How do you feel?" Lenalee blurted out, feeling a powerful need to break the quiet mood that had fallen yet again. As soon as the words escaped her mouth, she wished she could take them back; they seemed so inadequate and wrong, something she shouldn't ask and something she didn't need to.

"Fine," Allen answered in that brisk tone, although slightly fainter this time. It was a massive understatement; as he spoke the word, Allen felt something warm growing in his stomach and it had nothing to do with hunger or Jeanette. It was a familiar feeling, one that he presently associated with happiness, yet in his current state, Allen couldn't express this knowledge in words. "No," he corrected, realising his earlier mistake. "I'm…"

"Mm?" Lenalee prompted almost inaudibly.

"…I'm going to sleep really well tonight."

It was the only thing Allen could think of to say, and it _was_ the undeniable truth.

"That's good." Lenalee suddenly realised that she was smiling, the most nervous and honest one she'd given since learning she was a witch, and, to her lack of surprise, Allen was smiling _back_, the feelings within her reflected a thousand times more intensely in that one gesture.

_Allen-kun, you…_

"It's late," she burst out abruptly, unable to let that sentence continue in her mind. It wasn't something Lenalee thought she could face right now, not after… not in this state of peaceful contentment she was in right now. "We should be getting to bed, Allen-kun."

Allen nodded silently, and they stumbled to their feet awkwardly, careful not to get _too_ close to the other. Right now, even the simplest touch that, in normal times, wouldn't cause even the slightest reaction would be too much for either to handle. One distracted look at the clock told Allen only fifteen minutes had passed since Lavi's departure; he stared at it in disbelief as Lenalee collected her presents and kitten.

"Good night, Allen-kun," she said at the entrance to the girls' dormitories. When Allen turned to look at her, their eyes met momentarily before Lenalee looked away again. A slight pang of hurt shot through Allen's heart; was she-

"Good night," Lenalee repeated. "Happy birthday, Allen-kun."

"Thank you, Lenalee, and good night," he said softly in response.

The dark-haired girl then turned and fled up the stairs. Once she was out of sight, a confused Allen staggered mindlessly to his own room, packing away the remainder of his gifts and changing into pyjamas in a completely blank state of mind. It was not until his head had hit the soft pillow and sleep threatened his consciousness when he finally found himself able to reflect on what had occurred.

The… the ki… ki… _kiss_.

"Oh God…" Allen mumbled to the empty room, his bare left hand moving up to touch his lips gently, "it really… Lenalee… we…"

_Lenalee _kissed _me! _Me! _And…_

As tired as he was, Allen felt the strange urge to jump to his feet and shout the strangely happy feeling he had to everyone in the boys' dorm- no, Gryffindor Tower! (Except Lenalee would hear, and-) Instead, he settled for a wide grin that never completely disappeared even when sleep overtook the boy, unable to calm his racing heart.

"Lenalee," Allen murmured drowsily, "why did you do that? Why would you want to… if you don't…"

But what if she did?

…then why couldn't she meet his eyes afterwards? Why the 'happy birthday' as if it were a present for him and not something she wanted to-

_No! _Allen forced his mind away from any negative thoughts. _I don't know how Lenalee feels, so there's no use in getting sad about it. It's like that thing with the 14__th__… if I can't understand it no matter how much I think about it, and with Lenalee, I won't, not without talking to her again – and I will tomorrow! – I can't just let myself worry over it forever! I have to be positive!_

And considering the events that just transpired, being positive wasn't very difficult for Allen to do. He fell asleep soon after thinking of the softness of her lips and the warmth he'd felt at the contact.

Lenalee, meanwhile, could probably have benefitted from Allen's self-administered advice.

_I did it,_ she repeated to herself as she lay awake in bed, staring at the ceiling. _I did it. I… I kissed Allen-kun…_

_What was I thinking?!_

_He seemed to like it, though… This was a birthday gift to Allen-kun, and he liked it. It was a success. That's all there is to it, right?_

With a low groan, Lenalee rolled over onto her side and curled up tightly.

_Except now I don't know what _I'm _feeling…_

…_not that I did before, but now I'm even more confused! _Lenalee clenched her eyes shut tightly. _Before, I thought it would be a friendly gesture that I might enjoy, if it wasn't disgusting – kissing Allen-kun would be disgusting?! But it hadn't happened back then! And now…_

…_And now my heart feels tight and I almost feel like crying, and I sort of wish it had never happened…_

_Friendly gesture! Friendly! _A harsh laugh escaped from her throat, and Lenalee felt instantly thankful she was alone in her dormitory that night. _How could a kiss like that be _friendly_?! Now things will be all awkward between us! O-of course, I don't feel any different… not that different… and I think maybe if that was it, everything would be all right…._

How could she have seen _that_ coming, though? And now that she knew, how could she ever have thought even for the slightest moment that Allen wouldn't have wanted such a thing?!

She couldn't ignore it now that it had been made painfully obvious, not in words but in the way he'd looked at her immediately afterwards with that heart-wrenchingly beautiful smile and that look in his warm grey eyes…

That Allen-kun _liked_ her…

_Peace and contentment, Lenalee. Don't think about it any more tonight. Just tonight._

Lenalee fell asleep soon afterwards, thoughts and dreams consciously focused on anything but the kiss.

* * *

At the same time as the 'gift-giving', Lavi found himself in an eerily similar situation to his Exorcist friends.

"Well…" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively at the slightly younger and strangely familiar student standing mere centimetres away from his body. "Guess there's no choice but for us to follow custom, eh?"

It _had_ been an accident, surprisingly. Lavi had been meandering down the corridors, intending to find his way back to his dorm, when he'd made a wrong turn and bumped into a dark-haired female student moving in the opposite direction. To his great (mis)fortune, a sprig of mistletoe had been hung above that intersection – and the momentum had carried the pair directly below it.

"I'm terribly sorry about this," Lavi added as an afterthought. "It really wasn't intentional – but while we're here…"

The girl looked up at him with an eerily calm dark gaze.

"The last time I kissed a boy on Christmas Day," she told him, "it was a _very_ bad breakup."

Lavi was stunned into silence.

"…Merry Christmas," he finally managed to say, and, with a wary glance at the girl, they both turned to go to their destinations without another word.

It was not until two corridors later that Lavi realised why she was so familiar: she was that weird girl from a few months ago!

_Pretty,_ he thought, shuddering, _but that one needs some serious mental help._

* * *

A/N: …well, that was long. Sorry for the wait! And the length! (This was over 16,000 words...)

A few things to address: The first-and-a-half parts were written about a month before the rest, so… that's why it sounds weird. I originally wanted to have my OCs do the Timcanpy conversation, but after some discussion with others… they're really that bad?! Argh. Anyway, the HP characters will never be more important than, uh, that.

Christmas scene felt really dragged out. I hope that didn't… um… freak anyone out or something… it was originally supposed to end long before that, but… anyway.

Oh! One quick thing: To all non-fans of Allen/Lenalee, I'm sorry if you became upset or something at the last bit... because I know there are some of you reading this (and it DOES make me happy to know that)... but I hope it's all okay. The relationship was always intended to go somewhere, and I did warn you... :3 And if you are a fan of the pairing, well, some people have been complaining about the "lack of romance" and so... I guess you can't now? (Not that I changed the fic for reviews; just addressing things here.)

Please review! I love your reviews! I got so many last time and it made me _really_ happy! So please review with whatever you have to say – constructive criticism, any OOCness, bad presents, or good presents, enjoyable/funny scenes, anything! I'll do my best to respond to you, especially if you have a question or anything I can comment on, and it's within a few days of me posting this chapter. :)

Thank you for reading!


	9. Scroll 9

The Exorcism Displacement

Disclaimer: This person does not own DGM nor Harry Potter. She'd like the money, though.

Warning: This chapter is highly angsty and introspective, and is not funny in the slightest.

* * *

Scroll Nine: Of Kisses, Kittens, and Allen's Magical Abilities (or Lack Thereof)

The morning sun's rays streaming through heavy curtains awoke the white-haired boy by forcing themselves underneath his fluttering eyelids. He groaned, flailing one arm around before it finally fell onto his eyes, providing a temporary solution to the blinding glare. His body still felt heavy with sleep; although he had no sense of the time during the holidays, he did know that he could afford to go back to sleep at the moment, and would like nothing more than to do just that.

One of the first things Allen became aware of, however, as consciousness unwillingly crept upon his fuzzy mind, was the feeling of something pressed against his lips.

_Lena-_

It took all of a split second for Allen to realise that whatever was kissing him, it wasn't Lenalee. For one, Lenalee's lips didn't feel cool, hard, and somewhat round…

"Ugh, Timcanpy…" Allen waved the reddened hand at his forehead, swatting at the golden golem perched on his mouth. "Ew…"

A weight was suddenly lifted from his face. Allen cracked open one grey eye. The first thing he noticed was the giant, toothy grin of Timcanpy hovering just inches away. The boy scowled at it, evoking no reaction from the golem.

"That was mean," Allen muttered before turning onto his side, wrinkling his nose and moving his left hand down to scrub his lips vigorously. Although sleep still clouded his mind, it would not be long before he was fully awake and conscious; there was no hope of returning to the same deep, peaceful state of sleep he'd been in a few minutes earlier. With a sigh, he let his arm drop to his side and gave into the oncoming awareness. Timcanpy had stirred a recent memory into his conscious thoughts, and he still felt a powerful shock and joy as the events replayed in his mind.

Lenalee had kissed him last night.

Out of the corner of one eye, Allen caught a flash of moving gold: Timcanpy bobbing in the air, the wideness of his grin showing his amusement. Blushing, Allen realised he'd been smiling just as widely as his golem, and with far more silliness. He took a calming breath and pressed the corners of his lips down, then pushed himself upwards to a sitting position.

_I am going to think about this seriously,_ Allen told himself. _I don't want to look like an idiot during breakfast._

Which, he noticed with a surreptitious glance at the clock, was now. In fact, he'd be late if he didn't start getting dressed _right this moment_.

Allen continued to stare at the clock for a moment, fully aware of the fact that he _should_ be climbing out of bed at any moment to get dressed, and perhaps even think objectively about the events of last night. After all, he would probably see Lenalee at the morning meal. Shouldn't he consider how that kiss might affect their relationship, at least in the very immediate future?

He _should_, but…

A sudden laugh burst from his throat, and Allen flopped back onto the bed, his head falling onto the corner of the pillow. Lenalee had kissed him! Kissed him! It hadn't been a dream; it had really happened!

"Lenalee kissed me," Allen said aloud, grey eyes widening with joyful disbelief as the last syllable fell off his lips. _I never thought I'd say that. I never thought I'd get to say that!_

In the air, Timcanpy slowly rolled over, never dropping his grin. It seemed Allen's happiness was somewhat infectious. Not that Allen noticed, as he'd begun to roll around on his wide bed, untidy hair falling into his face as he turned onto his stomach at the edge of the bed. Still laughing, he pushed himself away with one dangling foot, rolling back the other way-

And this time, Allen fell off the other side with a loud thump.

Still hovering above the bed, Timcanpy chuckled, bobbing up and down. A second later, the golem turned sharply to one side as a pillow flew in his general direction, going straight through what would have been his left wing. Without losing its grin, Timcanpy turned downwards to face Allen, the boy's playful pout barely suppressing a smile.

"I'm going to get you next time," Allen warned in a barely menacing voice before picking himself up off the ground, supporting himself on the bed. As soon as he'd gotten to his feet, his stomach growled, eliciting another snicker from Timcanpy. "After breakfast," he added. He might meet Lenalee there, or he might not, but he'd have time to think on the way downstairs. Assuming the stairs didn't shift on him again, that is – even after three months, Allen still hadn't figured out their patterns. It had just been last week when he'd been late to Divination due to a futile quest down what had looked like the right hallway…

Yet despite plenty of time to think on the way to the Great Hall (and getting lost twice on the way; it seemed the inhabitants of Hogwarts' paintings had had quite the Christmas party the night before, and most were still asleep or hung over and therefore unable to give him directions), Allen didn't even have the faintest hint of a solution as to how to approach Lenalee by the time he found himself in front of the enormous pair of doors.

His stomach was flip-flopping, though empty of even butterflies, and Allen knew he wasn't prepared to face her if things weren't going to go as normal. However, he also knew that he could have spent days thinking about the problem and would likely never have come up with a solution. Besides, he was _hungry_. Breakfast came before any awkward moment in his social life.

So Allen took a deep breath, braced himself, and entered the Hall.

Allen hadn't realised he'd unconsciously been praying for Lenalee to be absent until his eyes fell upon the Gryffindor table and he discovered that, in fact, his normally terrible luck had remained consistent. Lenalee was sitting at the table, alone, and with a plate full enough that he wondered if he must have just missed her in the Gryffindor common room. And as if that wasn't bad enough, she looked up at the very moment he noticed her.

The white-haired Exorcist gulped. If God hated him this much, there was no way Lenalee would treat this as a normal morning and he could get away without having to seriously think about how to treat her now that their relationship might have changed. Not that he'd ever come up with an answer.

After all, Allen realised as he attempted a calm stride towards the table, he didn't _feel_ any different.

He'd woken up that morning the same person he'd been when he fell asleep last night – or perhaps the night _before_ last night would have been a more apt comparison. He'd been happy, sure, and that wasn't the most familiar of feelings for him, but neither was it all that rare. It certainly wasn't unique for him, unlike the experience of being _properly_ kissed by a girl he liked. And when he'd seen Lenalee for the first time since… then… he'd only felt panic and worry at the situation he might face. Nothing about Lenalee had changed, to him.

So, Allen concluded as he stiffly sat down next to Lenalee and gave her a weak smile and nod, if this was really just a normal morning for him, could he be blamed for not knowing how to react as if it weren't?

"Good morning, Allen-kun," Lenalee murmured in response, violet eyes flickering in his direction briefly before she turned back to her breakfast.

And with that, an awkward silence descended.

…_It wasn't good enough! _Allen ran his fingers through loose white bangs as he stared at his now full plate. He should have said something right away, shouldn't he? He should be saying something right now! Usually, it was Lenalee who started the conversations – unless he arrived first, although that had only happened once or twice in three months. If she was silent, did that mean he _couldn't_ just behave as if everything were normal?

"So…" Allen began, turning to Lenalee with a wide smile. She looked up, seemingly startled at the sound of his voice. "Um… How…" Desperately, he wracked his brain for any conversation topic that wouldn't relate to the previous night, day, or feelings. Unfortunately, most topics – including the reliable ones such as 'how did you sleep last night', or 'isn't it sad that Christmas is already over' – were instantly eliminated by those criteria alone. Wasn't there something else he could ask about?

The weather? Allen's grey eyes flickered upwards, to where the ceiling of the Great Hall reflected a moderately sunny day outside. Almost immediately, he grimaced; if he was considering talking about unremarkable weather, things _must_ be bad. Why now, of all times? He'd never had problems talking to anyone before… although, Allen had to admit, that was mostly when someone was friendly enough with him to take the initiative in starting a conversation. There was a reason he and Kanda could go on a mission without murdering each other before the end of it (most of the time).

A soft wriggling in the sleeve of his robes alerted Allen to Timcanpy's presence. Almost immediately, the question popped into his mind.

"How is Jeanette?" Allen finished. Lenalee gave a start; he suddenly became aware that she'd been staring at him with a worried look, and had been for a few minutes now. However, as startled panic faded and the question processed in her mind, she promptly lit up and reached for her bag.

"She's doing very well," came Lenalee's voice from below the table. A moment later, the dark-haired head popped up again, the girl's hands now filled with a wriggling kitten. "It was such a surprise to wake up to her this morning," Lenalee continued, gently stroking Jeanette's head with one finger. "I haven't had a pet before… that I can remember… so I've never had someone wake me up like that before!"

"What happened?" Allen asked weakly. Timcanpy had generally been a good companion, but if such behaviour was not unique to the feline species, Allen had some idea of what might have happened to Lenalee. On the rare occasions that Allen had slept longer than the golem, he had been met with rather rude awakenings. Nothing like the prank Timcanpy had played that morning, but anyone who encountered him that morning would have found a very different Allen than the perky, polite boy they knew.

"Well…" Lenalee's cheeks flushed pink at the memory. "When I woke up, I felt something warm and heavy on my neck…"

Allen nodded in response. Timcanpy preferred other sleeping locations, and the one time he'd kept a cat nearby it had been too fat a creature to sleep on _anyone's_ neck or chest without choking them, but it was no surprise that the kitten had immediately gone to the nearest source of warmth it could find.

"…It tickled," Lenalee admitted with a sheepish laugh. "Her fur is short, and whenever she shifted…"

That was definitely _not_ an experience Allen had ever had with the smooth Timcanpy, regardless of the sleeping location. Still, although the thought hadn't crossed his mind, it was hardly difficult to believe that it could have happened. Blushing faintly with embarrassment, Allen murmured an apology. "I didn't think of that when…"

Lenalee blinked and cocked her head to one side, looking puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"That she'd wake you up like that…" Allen scrubbed a hand through his long bangs. Rude awakenings made him think of Timcanpy earlier that morning, which inevitably led back to thoughts of the previous night. And even though things felt normal for _him_, if he couldn't think of a proper reply soon, the topic of awakenings might inevitably make Lenalee think about- "Are you going to spend today with her, then?"

"I might…" Lenalee continued to scratch the kitten's head, violet eyes softening at its pleased purr. "She seems to like me so far. I thought maybe I'd spend today at the library, if I'm allowed to bring her there."

"I can take care of her if not," Allen offered quickly. The library seemed an odd place to spend a holiday afternoon, especially after Lenalee's intensive studies during the school term, but he was sure she had her reasons. Lenalee wasn't the type to simply sit around and read, not if she couldn't have her closest friends nearby. "Are you looking for anything in particular?"

The girl nodded. "Cat care books, actually." She gave a soft laugh, and Jeanette stirred; Timcanpy gave a startled rustle at the sudden movement of the cat. "I always wanted a pet, but we weren't really allowed to have them in the Order."

Allen gulped; he hadn't thought of bringing her back to the Order, either. What if cats _weren't_ allowed? It was common knowledge that they didn't get along with golems, after all, and if it came down to one or the other…

"But I'm sure it'll be fine now," Lenalee continued. Allen silently sighed with relief. "I can take care of her all on my own."

"Everyone else would be too busy to take care of a small pet," Allen agreed.

"Because of that, though… I want to know exactly how to take care of her. And maybe…" Lenalee's expression changed to a slightly worried frown. "I don't know how much money we have left, but…"

"Food?" Allen asked worriedly. That hadn't been something he'd thought about when he'd bought the kitten! Of course their care wouldn't be inexpensive. Now that he thought about it, the shopkeeper _had_ mentioned some of the costs… but he'd been too excited at finding the perfect gift for Lenalee to pay close attention.

But Lenalee shook her head, her smile restored. "The pets are all cared for at Hogwarts. One of my dorm-mates – Hermione; you've met her – has a cat, and I know she doesn't feed him herself. I could probably ask her about this sort of thing when she comes back…"

Allen felt a deeper shudder within his sleeve, and the sensation of cool teeth against his arm. He raised an eyebrow at the movement; what was Timcanpy so uncomfortable about? Did Lenalee mean that strange-looking cat they'd met that one time…

Before he could ask what Hermione's cat looked like, Lenalee continued.

"I was thinking about toys, actually. If it's all right to spend some money on it…"

Allen nodded quickly. "Definitely! Jeanette's part of our team now, right?"

"But you and Lavi might want to spend it on something for yourselves-"

The white-haired boy waved one hand in front of him dismissively. "Not at all. Besides, your birthday is coming up soon, right? You won't buy yourself anything for that, so it's your share anyway."

Lenalee nodded, but the smile had slipped from her face again. As her hands slipped under the kitten to scoop it up and hold to her chest, Allen wondered what he'd said to cause the pensive look in those eyes that wouldn't look at him anymore… and the pink blush appearing on her cheeks…

_Oh no… _He could have slapped himself, and nearly did. All this work to avoid mentioning last night, and he'd just had to bring up the subject of birthdays. The entire reason that kiss had happened… "Um… Lenalee…?" he began, desperately hoping it wasn't too late to change the topic, yet his fears were realised.

"About that, Allen-kun…"

Allen gulped. Normal mornings didn't include serious talks about kisses that may have happened the night before. Things might otherwise be the same for him, but this was one situation he'd never had to deal with before.

And with that realisation, his previous composure began to waver.

"Y-yes?" Allen managed to give her a shaky smile. Maybe, just maybe, she was thinking about her own birthday after all, and-

"Speaking of _birthday presents_…"

It was all Allen could do to refrain from making some comment on a potential gift for Lenalee in the hopes it might distract her. Instead, he continued to smile blankly, as if he didn't yet understand what she was talking about.

_It's a normal morning. Nothing strange relating to birthdays could possibly have happened. Nothing worth commenting on._

"…I think," Lenalee finished, eyes falling to her lap, "we need to talk."

Ah, and there were the dreaded words. A chill ran down Allen's spine at the soft, hesitant tone of Lenalee's voice. Why did she sound so worried?

"About what?" Allen forced himself to say through his fixed, fake grin.

"Allen-kun…" Lenalee's eyes flickered back to him with a momentary glint of frustration. "You know what," she continued, gaze dropping back down to the eerily still kitten in her arms. "Last night. What I… what we…" She broke off, blushing a deep red, to Allen's surprise; he couldn't remember ever seeing her so embarrassed, not even when he'd found her asleep with Johnny that first night in the new Headquarters.

Things definitely weren't the same for Lenalee. Had she decided that in the time they'd both had to think about it? But how could a kiss have any real impact on things at all? It wasn't as if feelings could change that easily, not after knowing that person for over a year. That had to be true for Lenalee, too. Did she think _he_ might believe otherwise?

Lenalee still hadn't said anything, or even moved, by the time Allen knew what he had to say. Taking a deep breath, he began to speak, words tumbling out of his mouth as if translated directly from his previous thoughts.

"Why do we need to talk about it?"

The young woman's head snapped up, mouth falling open in surprise.

"Because…" Allen ran one gloved hand through his hair nervously. His voice, however, held only gentle confidence. "Whatever happened doesn't change the fact that we're friends, right? We've known each other for so long already; we've been through so much together, fighting akuma and the Earl, and now this. If that hasn't changed this friendship, then why would…" For a moment, his mouth moved silently; confident or not, the word 'kiss' was evidently impossible for him to say at the moment. "Why would something like that even be worth commenting on?"

"Allen-kun…" Lenalee shook her head, strands of short, dark hair flying around her cheeks. "It's not like fighting akuma! How could you…" She inhaled deeply, visibly calming herself. Why was Lenalee so frustrated? "You know how small things can have a huge impact," she hissed in a suddenly low tone. "One moment, and everything changes."

"It hasn't so far," Allen pointed out defensively.

Lenalee's shoulders abruptly sagged. "That doesn't mean it _can't_."

"We've been through so much," Allen repeated. "Even those little moments – if things didn't change after… after that announcement…" _If anything, finding out I'm… not myself… would have mattered more to Lenalee than this, right?_

Yet she shook her head. "Those moments are different."

"How?"

"No matter what we might go through," Lenalee explained, still unable to meet his questioning gaze, "whatever bad things we might face, I… I can't let go of you. You're a part of my world, Allen-kun, no matter what may happen to make it difficult to keep you there.."

"And what makes this any different?" Allen asked gently, gaze softening. His heart clenched painfully in a way it hadn't since… well, last night… yet it felt warm and light at the same time.

"This isn't about a choice." Lenalee's voice trembled as she spoke; Allen wondered, with that warmth temporarily becoming ice, if he was just imagining the tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

_Please don't cry, Lenalee,_ he silently pleaded.

"No matter what happens because of this, you're not leaving my life… I hope," she added. "It's not about whether you're there or not, but _what_ you are…"

Allen almost gave an exasperated sigh, inappropriate as it might have been at the moment. Lenalee was obviously very concerned about their relationship, just as he'd worried, but hadn't he attempted to address that already? He'd never _meant_ to imply that their friendship would end!

As his mind struggled to find the right words to fix the situation, he shifted closer to pat her shoulder gently. Lenalee promptly looked up at him, his concerned and caring gaze suddenly meeting eyes glistening with unshed tears. That clenching of his heart suddenly felt uncomfortably tight, and a previously forgotten thought from the previous night echoed in his mind.

_Lenalee doesn't _want _anything to change. _

_Even though I've said I don't feel any differently, even though it feels like a normal morning for me, if anything did change between us… if Lenalee did want to kiss me, and… I-I wouldn't be unhappy about that. Nothing has changed, even though I wouldn't mind if it did._

…_Right. But Lenalee… Lenalee's worried that things might have changed, and she doesn't want them to. It's the opposite of how I feel. _

_I can't just try to end the conversation quickly to avoid any awkward discussion. Things are already awkward. My thoughts are still the same… I have to focus them better! _

Allen almost nodded to himself in affirmation of that thought. _If I concentrate on convincing Lenalee that things don't have to change, instead of that they haven't… because they haven't, but… I didn't think about how they possibly could change…_

Well, he had, but somehow, the logic of last night had flown straight out of his mind with sleep. Delighted bliss had turned directly into worry over the conversation that was currently happening, and somehow, the thought of what this _could_ mean instead of what it _did_ had never once crossed his mind. He'd spent so much time thinking of the past that he'd neglected the future.

And now he knew exactly what to say.

"Lenalee," he said quietly, letting his arm slowly drop down to her elbow in a comforting stroke. "I am still the same to you, right?"

She gave a half-hearted shrug.

"And you're the same to me. We're still friends."

"But…" Lenalee took a deep breath; the tears still had not fallen, but Allen could tell that only strength of will kept them from doing so. "Allen-kun, I _kissed_ you…"

Allen stiffened momentarily at the first actual mention of the word. "And?"

"Friends don't…"

"It's not about what we do," Allen said calmly, pulling his gaze away from hers, "but how we feel about each other. You still think of me as a friend, right?"

"I…" Lenalee was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Of course."

"Me too. So… It doesn't matter if friends don't… don't… We'll decide what happens to us, and to our relationship. Things won't change if we haven't, or if we're not ready to." _If you're not ready to._

For a moment, Lenalee was silent, a thoughtful look on her face as Allen's words began to properly sink in. "It'll really be all right if we continue as usual?" she asked slowly, hesitant realisation dawning.

Allen nodded. "Why wouldn't it be?" he answered.

"But about the…"

"Forget about it." To his mild surprise, Allen found it difficult to say those words, and they came out somewhat forced. He certainly wasn't going to forget about it, and the thought that Lenalee might do so made his heart squeeze painfully – even with the knowledge that he was encouraging it for the sake of their relationship and Lenalee's emotional health. "It was a nice birthday present for me, and… that's it, right?"

"So if it never happens again, that'd be all right, Allen-kun?" The confidence was slowly seeping back into Lenalee's voice.

_No. _"Of course." Allen gave another wide, forced smile. "Not as long as you don't want to. Er, you know, if you don't feel that way." He couldn't force himself not to blush at that sentence, though, and it only deepened when a memory of his thoughts from last night followed it. He'd wondered if Lenalee _did_ feel that way… and even if she didn't want things to change, that didn't necessarily mean she didn't… feel… There could be other reasons for wanting their relationship to remain the same.

But, Allen reminded himself, he didn't know. Moreover, he certainly wasn't going to push the issue with Lenalee feeling so uncomfortable. Things weren't going to change, no matter how either of them felt.

And somehow, that didn't make him feel all that upset, either, especially when he saw Lenalee's relieved smile.

"Thank you, Allen-kun," she said quietly. "I know you're probably saying this to make me feel better – I don't know what you think, and for all I know it could be the opposite-"

Allen opened his mouth to reassure her of the truth being otherwise, but Lenalee continued before he had the chance to speak.

"-But right now, with our current situation being what it is, it really means a lot to me that our friendship is a constant in my life. Allen-kun, you know how important everyone is to me, and…" A tear slid from the corner of one eye, but Lenalee's soft smile prevented any panic from rising in Allen. "Thank you," she finished, letting go of Jeanette with one hand to clasp one of his over his knee, "for understanding."

Allen gave a slightly weaker smile in response. "I'll always be here for you, Lenalee." _I care for you very deeply._

After that, things went back to normal. Lavi arrived just as the pair finished breakfast, with no clue that anything out of the ordinary had even happened since he'd last seen them.

That is, if he didn't notice the barest hesitance in Lenalee's responses, almost as if something else was on her mind the entire time.

* * *

"Remember how I was telling you guys about that pretty girl I saw a few times?" Lavi threw one arm around Allen's shoulders playfully as they walked down a decorated hallway; the younger boy squirmed and pulled away, grimacing. "Well, I saw her again last night, under the mistletoe."

"You and girls, Lavi," Allen muttered. Behind him, Lenalee could imagine his eyes rolling. "And what did you say to her this time?"

"What, me?!" The usual feigned shock sounded oddly realistic this time. "No, it was weird…"

"She didn't say no?" Allen asked incredulously.

"Well… We didn't…" Lavi shook his head, looking somewhat pensive. "It was _weird_, Allen. She's kinda…"

"Pretty, we know, you said-"

"No, no… I don't think she's… _okay_, you know?"

Allen finally managed to get out from under Lavi's now-slackened grip. "Huh?"

"In here." Lavi tapped the side of his head with one finger. "She mentioned her ex."

"To reject you?"

"Allen, you're so mean!" Lavi clutched his heart dramatically. "Straight through the heart! Nah, not this time, I think. She said he was _dead_."

The younger Exorcist gave a visible shiver.

"And that he was the last person she kissed. Creepy, huh?"

Allen nodded slowly. "You're right…"

"So, think it was a rejection?"

The boy's jaw dropped. "You actually care?!"

"Well, no, not after that, but… My reputation, Allen! My pride as a man! I don't wanna kiss her after that, but would _she_ want to…"

Allen shrugged weakly; Lavi didn't seem satisfied by the response. "Maybe… Why would I know?"

"You've had experience, right? Kissing a creepy girl?"

For a moment, Allen gave him a bewildered look. Slowly, however, horror crept onto his face.

"Yeah, so would she have said something li-" Lavi cut off with a sharp inhalation and a yelp. "Allen," he croaked a minute later, doubled over and clutching his stomach, "that was _not_ necessary…"

"You brought it up," Allen said coldly. Lenalee idly wondered if the sound of knuckles cracking was just her imagination.

"Y-yeah, but… a kiss is a kiss…"

"That was assault," Allen muttered sullenly, turning to continue walking down the hall. Lavi immediately straightened, wincing as he dashed forward to catch up with Allen.

"You don't count it? Ah," the Bookman apprentice continued with a sly wink (could it be called that when he had just one visible eye?), having remarkably recovered from an elbow to the stomach in mere moments. "So you've never experienced the feeling of lips warm on yours, the passion ignited in that mere instant, the desire-"

In a remarkably Kanda-like move, Allen gave a soft "tch" and pointedly refused to look at Lavi.

It was, however, different enough from Allen's usual behaviour that Lavi took notice.

"Really?" The sly grin was back as he sidled up to the younger boy, whose stare was fixed on the vanishing point of the never-ending hallway. "Could it be that this beansprout has actually kissed someone _of his own will_?"

Allen might have agreed to forget about the kiss as anything potentially relationship-changing, but with the talk having happened little more than an hour before, it was still very present in his mind. Unfortunately, the blush rising on his cheeks was very obvious for the observant Bookman Junior.

"_You have?_" Lavi practically squealed with glee. "And before me, too! When did it happen, Allen?" He nudged the white-haired boy eagerly. "When?"

Allen opened his mouth as if to argue against Lavi's conclusion, but just a few seconds passed before he gritted his teeth and silently continued walking.

"So, recently, huh? Since coming here, I bet… Lots of that sort of thing going on around here, eh? But I haven't seen any girls around you… Just those other fifth-years, and…" Slowly, the red head turned around to present a knowing smile to Lenalee. "What do you think, Lenalee? _You_ certainly spend a lot of time with our experienced friend here…"

Lenalee blinked, startled by the sudden question. She hadn't realised how preoccupied she'd been until Lavi had reminded her that, while she'd been aware of the content of the conversation, it really hadn't registered in her mind. It wasn't like her at all. "What? Sorry, Lavi, I wasn't paying attention just now-" she began apologetically. Lenalee never managed to finish, however, since she was immediately distracted once again – this time by a white-haired boy who had abruptly turned on his heel and ran straight back to Lenalee the moment her name had left Lavi's lips.

"_Lenalee_," he interrupted, wearing a familiar too-innocent grin, "isn't it _great_ that we can all spend the day together again? There was a time during breakfast when I thought I'd have to find something to do around here on my own…"

"Oh, come on, Allen, you'd have spent the day with Lenalee in the library looking up cat things anyway," Lavi pointed out with a slightly accusing tone. "And what about me?"

"You'd probably spend the day reading history books," Allen retorted. Lavi didn't seem to notice the way Allen drew them away from Lenalee with careful steps backward, continuing the playful argument as he walked.

Once she was certain Lavi's attention had been completely diverted, Lenalee's shoulders slumped as she gave a silent sigh of relaxation. By the time Lavi's question had sunk in, Allen's change of subject had been enough to warn her of the dangers of answering, even in a nonverbal form. They hadn't explicitly agreed to keep it a secret, but if the kiss really hadn't meant anything, why would anyone need to know? Besides, if _Lavi_ of all people found out, Allen, at least, would never hear the end of it. She trusted the Bookman apprentice not to tell her brother once they returned home (and they would get back home!); she hadn't heard a thing from Komui about inappropriate hand-holding, after all, despite the redhead's suggestion back in the Ark…

_It wasn't inappropriate! Allen-kun was helping me walk up the stairs, that's all. I didn't want to trouble him, but he said it was all right…_

_But I didn't want to let go…_

_I needed your strength… I needed that comfort…_

Lenalee's steps slowed, but neither boy noticed as they continued their squabbling.

_If it hadn't been for Allen-kun, I wouldn't have been able to get through that and become strong. I wouldn't be able to be so carefree and happy now. I could believe in the future, but I wouldn't be this strong._

…_I still have a long way to go before really becoming strong, don't I,_ she added with a wry smile. _There will come a day when I no longer have to fight to protect everyone. I'll need to be strong then, too._

_Allen-kun, what will you do when that day comes?_

"Hm?" Allen suddenly turned his head, startling the female Exorcist. "Lenalee, did you say something just now?"

_Did I say that out loud again?! _Lenalee shook her head. "I… don't think so…"

"Oh. Sorry, then." He flashed her a smile before turning back to a flustered Lavi, having interrupted whatever the older boy was saying to pay attention to Lenalee. With a relieved sigh, Lenalee lifted one hand to her rapidly pounding heart. That had been quite a shock!

Yet the shock was quickly overwhelmed by the uncomfortable knowledge that surprise hadn't been the _only_ reason her heart had been beating faster than usual.

"Thanks for changing your plans, Lenalee," Lavi commented over his shoulder. "Sorry about this, but-"

"It's all right," Lenalee told him, waving the apology away. "My plans weren't definite, anyway. Besides, whatever it is you want to show us is also in the library, right?"

"It's not much…" The redhead somehow managed to shift his weight while maintaining an even stride. "If we need to discuss it, though…"

"Will we really be allowed to talk?"

"We've done it before." Lavi shrugged. "If we keep it down."

"Is that even possible for you?" Allen muttered under his breath. It was loud enough, however, for the other two to hear.

"Wha- Of course! I'm not… not…" Lavi wracked his mind, attempting to come up with an example of someone particularly loud, or at least louder than he was. It took a few moments. "I'm not Komui!"

Lenalee was torn between raising an eyebrow questioningly and bursting into a fit of giggles at the truth of the implication.

"W-we'll just have to be careful," she finally managed to say, the mixed emotions converging in a shaky smile that barely suppressed any giggles threatening to escape. "A-And if not… the common room…"

Allen gave Lavi a sceptical look as Lenalee caught up to the other two in pace. By the time they arrived at the library, she'd managed to calm herself completely, although time and self-control weren't the only reasons. Walking beside Allen for ten minutes had given her a new anxiety to become preoccupied over; any amusement or displeasure quickly faded at the sudden tension she felt whenever she became aware of his presence.

_I'm sorry, Allen-kun,_ she silently breathed as the trio sat down at a table at the far end of the library from the doors. Lavi disappeared for a minute to retrieve the important texts, leaving Lenalee alone with the object of her distress for a few minutes. It was due to him that she'd been somewhat dissociated from reality prior to Lavi's sudden interruption, yet only now, alone and near to Allen, could the thoughts she hadn't been clear of at breakfast, and that she hadn't been able to form afterward, be voiced, even if only to herself.

_Even with your reassurance that nothing will change – and it made me feel so much better – I can't completely feel comfortable around you now that I know how you feel. You didn't tell me about it… I think you may even have hidden it… if you even know. But I can't just think of you as just another friend now that I'm aware of it. It's changed _something, _and it's all my fault. _

_And not only that, I wasn't honest about how _I_ feel, either…_

_Actually, I'm not really sure _what_ I feel. No, _she mentally corrected herself, _I do know that I'm scared. I know we don't _have_ to change just because something happened, and that isn't why I feel so nervous every time I'm reminded of it. We don't have to change just because you like me, not like that, but that isn't the only reason, either… _

_I don't know what I want… and that's what scares me…_

"Lenalee?"

Lenalee's head snapped up to find a concerned look on Allen's face directly across the table from her.

"Hm?"

"Is everything okay?"

She nodded stiffly. "Of course. W-why?"

"You don't seem like yourself today." The concern slipped into worry for a moment as a thought seemed to strike him. "This morning…"

"Huh? N-No, it's not that." Lenalee shook her head and flashed him a bright smile. "It's nothing."

Allen nodded slowly, looking only half-convinced.

"I'm very content with what we discussed before," Lenalee reminded him. Why would Allen still be thinking about that? Had her misgivings been more obvious than she had previously thought? Or had Allen just become more perceptive than she realised? If he suspected she knew how he felt, and that he'd probably been going against his own desires for her sake- Internally, she cringed at the thought of a possible sacrifice; it made her feel guilty for not recognising what he wanted, even when the thought of doing what he did made her feel uncomfortable.

"All right." He smiled back, seeming more relaxed now.

"Hey," came Lavi's voice a moment before the redhead appeared from behind a row of books, "what're you two talking about over here?"

Allen responded with a dismissive mutter.

As Lenalee watched the amusement of Lavi react with shock and petulance, the smile she'd been wearing slowly faded.

_You were wrong, Allen-kun, _she thought, violet eyes wandering to him unconsciously. _Something did change. And neither of us could help it…_

"_All right, then_." Lavi slammed a book onto the table in front of Allen, ending their squabble. "It isn't much, but it's what we've been looking at for the past few months…"

"Evidence of another wizard in the Order?" Allen asked nervously.

"Not quite…" Pale fingers flipped through the pages nimbly, finally stopping about three-quarters of the way through the book. He didn't even need to scan the page before pointing to a paragraph halfway down the right-hand page. "But it's worth noting."

Lenalee leaned forward as Allen read scraps of the passage aloud. "New kind of magic… possibly discovered… This isn't a history book?"

"It's an old discovery," Lavi explained. "Anyway, just keep reading; you'll see it."

"…unknown origins… Did they ever find those out?"

Lavi shrugged. "I'm sure they're known _somewhere_. Not in this book, though."

"…documented… assassins… _Assassins?!_" Allen almost bolted out of his seat. "Assassins using magic?!"

"It's more familiar than you think." Lavi rolled his eyes. "Besides, what do you think _we_ are?"

"Exorcists?" Allen suggested.

"We _do_ kill akuma," Lenalee pointed out. "It's for the sake of the world, but it may not seem that way to ordinary citizens. They might not even know what akuma are."

Allen sank back into his seat, sobering. "I suppose…"

"Anyway, these are _real_ assassins. Just keep reading," Lavi reminded the pair.

"But what do assassins- wait a moment…" Allen held up one hand as his eyes quickly scanned the material. "Wearing red robes?"

It was as if a rock had dropped into Lenalee's stomach. It couldn't be – but it _had_ to be so. "It's…"

"Crow." Allen turned away from the material to give Lavi a questioning look. "But they're just recorded here as possible users of an alternative magic. We don't know if they're related to these wizards at all. And we already know they have weird spells and such."

"We should still be cautious," Lenalee warned. The mere mention of the group had made her nauseous, and caused memories of the past to flash uncontrollably in front of her eyes. _No… _"Even their presence in the Order is something to be concerned about. If we have to be even more careful around them…"

Allen groaned and collapsed onto the book. "Is that _possible_? I share a bedroom with one… And he…" An unreadable expression flickered in his eyes for a brief moment, but Allen didn't elaborate except to say, "Link knows… quite a lot of things."

"They might never have gotten in touch," Lavi pointed out. "Just worth being aware of, that's all. Maybe some of the others have an eye on 'em. That could mean their attention is off of us, or…"

"Or they're even more vigilant for knowledge of their kind," Lenalee finished. "At least we know it's a different kind of magic. Not what… what I use." The realisation was still new to her, in ways; the rapid pace of her recent studies had made the time feel almost surreal, and once she was allowed to relax with her old friends again, it was hard to remember that those times _had_ happened. Using magic was a delight, but after so many years of exposure to a very different sort of power, it was difficult to reconcile this new ability with her daily life. The future time period didn't help, nor did the presence of only two familiar figures. Perhaps the unreal, almost dreamlike feeling of these months made it easier for her to deal with the separation from her family… her…

As Lenalee broke off the thought before it could continue, and possibly become painful, she noticed two sets of eyes wearing near-identical looks of realisation.

"That's right… Lenalee, you don't _have_ to worry about this," Lavi said slowly.

"What?"

Allen nodded. "You're a witch, right?" he said, sounding somewhat more solemn – was it her imagination or did he even sound unhappy? – than Lavi.

"Yes, but…" She suddenly grasped what the other two had been thinking. "They _wouldn't_ have a reason to remove my memories, would they?"

"Not back home. Here, maybe." Lavi shrugged. "But we don't know much about this time period. Can't really bring anything back to screw things up."

"You're one of them, after all," Allen pointed out.

"But I still have to be as careful!" Lenalee shook her head. She certainly hadn't thought of _that_ when she'd started using magic. The only things that had been on her mind were returning home, and doing something new and exciting. The possibility that it might affect her relationship with everyone else had never occurred to her, and it took all her mental resources to struggle against the new negative thoughts that threatened to overwhelm her. "It won't be any different."

"You don't have anything to risk." Lavi shrugged again and moved to sit on the table. "Well, neither do I, come to think of it. I'm a Bookman. The old man will probably be happy I know about this. Gotta learn at some point."

"That's good," Allen muttered weakly. "You'll have nothing to worry about."

"What _could _we do? Walk up to some guy and tell him we know magic?" Lavi chuckled. "It's fine, beansprout. We've probably been overreacting the whole time. Can't be hard to think up an excuse about why we've been gone, and unless Lenalee starts waving that wand around the place, we won't attract attention-"

"Right," Allen agreed, sounding just as confident as before. "Yeah, it's fine."

It was very obvious to Lenalee, however, that to Allen, it was anything but fine. "Allen-kun…" She'd lifted one hand off the table, unconsciously reaching out to clutch one of his, before she realised what she was doing. Placing her hand back down, she continued, a little faster than she intended. "These memories are important to all of us, and so is the fact that we share them. If we were ever discovered… I'd rather forget than remember an experience we had that you don't."

Allen blushed pink for a moment; was he thinking about the kiss? Lenalee almost blushed at the thought. "O-Of course…"

"I have just as much to lose," she said softly. After a raised eyebrow from Lavi, she quickly corrected, "Lavi and I do. It'd be too difficult to remember when you…"

"I understand." Allen gave her a warm smile, and she gave a silent sigh, relieved at the stronger tone of his voice. "It wouldn't be your world otherwise, right?"

"Your…" Lavi gave each of them a bemused look. "World?"

"It's nothing," Lenalee assured Lavi before turning back to Allen. "Right. Discovering that I can do magic hasn't changed anything, _either_." She resisted the urge to wink after emphasizing the last word, knowing Allen would understand her reference to his own speech just a few hours ago.

_Except things did change for me, if not for Allen-kun. If they're the same for him, does that mean he's always liked me? For how long? He said he feels the same way towards me… Other than knowing that he likes me, I don't think I feel any differently towards him… Does that mean things really haven't changed at all? The Allen-kun I knew was always someone who felt this way towards me? But can I really act the same towards him from now on, knowing that? _

_It's as if everything changed even though this changed nothing at all…_

Yet Allen nodded nonetheless, giving a soft chuckle at her choice of words.

"You two…" Lavi's green eye was narrowed in a sceptical frown. "You're hiding something, aren't you?"

"What makes you think that?" Allen asked, sounding completely innocent. Lenalee stared at Lavi with an equally puzzled expression.

"Since this morning… Could it be…" The frown slowly transformed into a triumphant look. "_Ah…_"

"What?" It was Allen's turn to glare. "What are you talking about, Lavi?"

"_Nothing_."

"Lavi…" Lenalee said in a warning tone.

"Hey, if you two can have secrets, why can't I?" Lavi gave a carefree shrug. "Maybe I'll tell you what I know… one day… after you've confirmed my suspicions for me…"

"There's nothing to confirm, moron," Allen muttered, rolling his eyes. Lenalee hoped Lavi didn't notice the momentary, unconscious glance he'd given her immediately before. The Bookman apprentice did seem rather preoccupied with his smug grin to notice such small details…

"We'll see about that, won't we?"

Lenalee sighed. If this escalated any further, how many times would they have fought this morning? Perhaps she'd have expected this if Lavi were Kanda, but… "So while we're here," she interrupted just as Allen opened his mouth to respond, "can you two please help me find those cat care books?"

Neither boy could resist that pleading, cute smile of hers. Lenalee silently filed the fact away in her mind for use in future spats as they set off down the aisles. Now if only it worked on Kanda…

* * *

It was not the first night in the new year that dim moonlight had shone upon the hunched figure of an Exorcist in the Gryffindor common room, poring over an open textbook with the shadowy shape of a wand in hand. A soft whisper accompanied the faint swoosh – promptly followed by the frustrated grumble that had accompanied it every time before.

Of course, it couldn't be _Lenalee_ failing so spectacularly at even the simplest of spells.

With a sigh, Allen ran one gloved hand through his loose bangs. Lenalee had made the charm to move the books look so _easy_ that one morning! She was certainly more intelligent than he, and generally a faster learner, but she'd shown as many signs of the ability as he had before coming to the future. If she could do it…

Frowning, Allen prodded the shining silver needle on the table with the tip of the wand. Maybe Transfiguration just wasn't his thing.

Or maybe he was just refusing to accept the obvious: that Lenalee was a witch and he wasn't.

The fact that she hadn't gone to Hogwarts at the appropriate age didn't mean _everyone _in the care of the Order from an early age could have. (Allen shuddered at the realisation that this might include Kanda. As amusing as it might be to watch Kanda fail his classes, he would really prefer not to give the idiot any further tools to antagonize him, or anyone else. Or, for that matter, allowing Kanda to learn something Allen himself couldn't do. It was a matter of pride). At least she'd been in the Order – unlike himself, healing the injured nerve in his left arm at Mother's home.

Then again, he _had _been in the care of Cross… an Exorcist… and a wizard…

Allen shook his head; it was a foolish hope. If he couldn't even perform first-year magic – from their first _class_, at that – even with practice and decent if not above-average skills at some non-magical subjects, then there was really only one conclusion, with the statistical likelihood of it being so even if he had no evidence one way or the other-

Perhaps he'd have more success with Charms.

After fifteen minutes, the very same needle had not budged, and Allen had run out of ways to potentially mispronounce the complicated-looking name of the spell for flight. He slumped against the soft back of the couch, grey eyes reflecting discouragement as they focused on that silver line against the dark tabletop. He probably hadn't practised enough, but after days without even a sign of ability, and nights with less sleep than he needed thanks to these practice sessions… It was enough to make him question why he was doing this at all.

No, he knew exactly why he tried this, and why he wanted this; it was his strength of will that he questioned – not just for magic, but for anything he ever wanted. His reason for living was to save akuma and humankind, and until recently, he couldn't think of anything else he really wanted at all (besides another meal cooked by Jeryy, but he'd easily give that up to save a life). Why had that changed?

The dark ceiling held no answers, but looking at it prompted Allen's mind into giving one. After months of living in the future, in a time where akuma no longer existed and where the dangers to humans were all ones he could do little or nothing about, it was easy to forget that he _had_ such a mission. With no constant reminders of the Order, or even something reminiscent of his life back home, it faded to a memory with only the increasingly distant knowledge that in a few months, he would return to the battle once more. For now, all he could do was live each day as it came, with the simple obstacles of classes and friendships, and slowly, a peaceful life was starting to become… normal.

Allen almost chuckled at the thought; he'd never considered his life to be peaceful. He'd never thought he'd be able to imagine a peaceful life for himself, either. There had never been any thought to what might lie beyond the Earl's defeat, if he even thought he might defeat the Earl in his lifetime, or survive doing so. What would he do without that goal to drive him, to direct his thoughts, actions and feelings, and motivate him to survive?

_But it wasn't the Earl, or even akuma, that encouraged you to fight._ Allen squirmed at the uncomfortable thought, yet he knew it to be true. Was it the fact that made him feel so uncomfortable, however, or the memories it was associated with? _You only regained your strength when the lives of those important to you were at risk-_

How long since he'd thought about the Fourteenth, too? He'd grown so used to seeing that shadow in mirrors that it no longer triggered any thought or worry about his situation, and while the scar running down his chest served as another reminder of what he was, it too seemed distant when the Noah were no longer a constant threat to him, or to those he associated with every day. As long as his mind remained his own, with all the time that had passed without developments he was conscious of (perhaps he shouldn't let down his guard in case he _wouldn't_ notice any changes), it was equally easy to forget he, or those he cared for, were in any danger at all.

So was this what it would be like? If, by some miracle of fate, everything ended and he remained himself, alive, with everyone important to him also alive and well – and somehow, he could almost feel optimistic about it right now – would this be the kind of life he would live?

Somehow, it didn't _feel_ as if he had nothing to live for. There were still reasons he wanted to keep walking, even if the scale was much, much smaller: to enjoy each day with others, to accomplish the little goals in his education (perhaps in a career, one day), to consider the possibility of liking someone, and someone liking him back, and maybe-

That was how everyone lived, wasn't it? They found their life's purpose in their careers and their families, and for every person suffering from loss that he'd met, there had been at least two others with hope for the future. Even some of those facing loss had carried hope.

Allen wrinkled his nose in a brief scowl; it seemed awfully selfish to suddenly want to live for oneself when he had previously felt so driven for the sake of others, whether they be human or akuma – and just thinking about that goal sent a surge of renewed desire through his heart for it. It almost made him want to jump out off the couch and take action, despite knowing he could do nothing until he returned. But perhaps he could have some hope, too. It wasn't _wrong_ to want _a_ future.

_If that's ever accomplished, if I can continue to walk, I will. I promised you that, Mana._

Besides, his life was important to others. It was something he had begun to realise more than a year ago, yet he was still willing to give it up for the sake of his ultimate goal despite that knowledge. Even this epiphany hadn't changed that fact. Nonetheless, knowing that others valued his life did make him feel better about wanting to live even beyond the achievements of defeating the Earl and saving the akuma. Even that was for the sake of others.

…Particularly Lenalee.

_Lenalee… _He had to admit that it _was_ difficult to think of a future beyond the Order without her. She'd played such a big role in his life since entering the Order, particularly during these past few months of peace, and had become the only real constant in his life in doing so. Regardless of the role she would play in his future – the thought made him blush; he knew exactly what role he'd _imagined_ her in, or perhaps _hoped_, if that was the right word – he didn't know if adjusting to that life would be so easy without her. It might be that he'd need more aid than these months of experience to adjust to a life without that goal of saving akuma, something to help him in the transition. Perhaps he could help others in doing so. He'd been a support for Lenalee early on, but Allen knew that she'd been the same for him, too, if not in such an overt manner. Lavi had been important too, of course, and Allen wasn't sure Lenalee alone would have made him feel quite so relaxed and content, but it was Lenalee who had been the most important.

And it was because of Lenalee that he was here right now, trying to perform magic.

It wasn't that he had the same goals as she did – as much as he wanted to return home, he had little hope of ever discovering the spell even if he _did_ perform some kind of magic, and he also knew enough of pride and cared enough for Lenalee that he didn't want to take that accomplishment away from her. It also wasn't out of his own pride; he might have wanted to be Kanda's equal, or even Lavi's, but somehow, he felt no wound to his ego at Lenalee's ability (not even to his manly pride; somehow, Lenalee was strong enough that he felt no _need_ to be more powerful and protect her. Not that he should, but he _was_ male…). However, it _was_ an injury to his self-esteem, if not actual pride, that he fought to correct.

He didn't need to be better than Lenalee, or even as good as her. He merely had to be _good enough_ for her.

The thought might have made Allen squirm with one interpretation of the thought; he still hadn't accepted the full weight of his feelings for her, and wanting to kiss her (again) was far from being on the same level as considering _that_ kind of a future. Yet even in their absolutely platonic relationship, it mattered to him. Knowing _any_ man in the Order was a wizard would have made him feel somewhat uncomfortable, but Lenalee was so much closer to him, so much more _important_ to him, that for reasons he knew were irrational and unreasonable, it somehow mattered that he become a socially acceptable… _comrade_ to her.

Of course, it didn't matter to Lenalee, but he knew how witches and wizards viewed Muggles, even when they'd grown up around them. Lenalee may have been different, but it wasn't Lenalee whose opinions he was concerned about. Not every witch could view Muggles as true equals, partners – not that they even were – and there were those who could not refrain from passing judgement. He didn't want Lenalee to suffer because of his association to her, and it was not merely for her sake that he wanted nothing less than to distance himself from her, much less break off their relationship entirely. The only thing he _could_ do was to become a suitable partner for her, no matter what their relationship was or would be.

All for the sake of a future he could only hope for, but would be equally necessarily for Lenalee's happiness.

Would he ever have focused this much on her if his other goals weren't quite so distant?

Allen sighed again and closed his eyes tightly. These thoughts were going around in circles, and it was starting to give him a headache. He really needed to stop thinking about this – he nearly smacked himself for immediately associating it with his earlier reflections on forgetting his original goals, as if it only proved his point on how he never thought about them anymore – and get some desperately needed sleep.

With a yawn, he stretched his arms above his head and turned to stand up-

-but the presence of a silhouetted figure behind him made him pause.

A moment later, panic flickered in his chest. He'd been innocently thinking for a while now, but if they caught a peek at the page his textbook was open to…

Allen gulped. No fifth-year would be practising such simple spells. Was his secret out?

_I'm sorry, Lenalee, Lavi…_

"Allen-kun, why are you still awake at this time?!"

The white-haired boy breathed a sigh of relief as the figure stepped closer to the light surrounding him, revealing Lenalee's familiar figure. "Oh, it's just you, Lenalee…"

"Why would you…" It was too dark to see the expression on her face, but he did notice that she shook her head as she cut off the question. "What are you doing up so late?! It's past midnight!"

Allen stifled a yawn. "Homework."

"But it's vacation!"

"I left it to the last minute," Allen explained. _That_ was true, even if it wasn't what he was doing that night. He'd really have to work hard tomorrow! "And there's only two days left…"

"You know I'd be happy to help you," Lenalee told him, walking around the couch. Allen gulped, reaching out with his right hand to quickly close the textbook and shove it to the side as she sat down on his left. He prayed she hadn't seen it… "What happened to your parchment?"

"Oh, I was… studying. Not actually writing."

Lenalee's level stare told him he wasn't good enough at lying to fool _her_. "Allen-kun, what were you doing?"

_She isn't going to look for herself?_ "It's nothing." He shifted a centimetre away from her, feeling uneasy being so close to that knowing and concerned look. "It isn't homework, but… it's nothing important, either."

"You're not sleeping properly. You've been tired recently… this isn't the first night you've stayed up like this, is it, Allen-kun?" she asked.

He could only nod. "You didn't… you knew I'd be here?"

It was Lenalee's turn to squirm. "I wanted to make sure…"

"Lenalee…" Allen knew he couldn't ask her not to worry about him; as much as he'd like to, he knew she would anyway. Lenalee _always_ worried about those she cared for. "I'll try to get more sleep after tonight."

"Every night?"

"…I can't promise that. This is the only time I can… do this."

"And it's absolutely necessary?" Lenalee's voice sounded just a little higher than normal.

"It's important to me," Allen told her. "It isn't… _necessary,_ but I feel as if I need to do this."

"I understand." Lenalee nodded. "Just try to sleep more, okay? You can't work your hardest in school or for this, whatever it is, if you're not in good shape."

"I'll try. Thank you, Lenalee." He couldn't help but smile; Lenalee was really an amazing person. She must have been worried, to lie awake and sacrifice her own sleep just to ensure that he was all right, yet she trusted him enough to accept his reassurances without even knowing _what_ he was doing. It almost seemed wrong of him not to trust her in return. One day, if he were ever successful in doing magic, or maybe even if he wasn't, he'd tell her. Unless she stumbled across his practice again, but…

She flashed him a weaker smile in response and reached out to squeeze his hand once, lightly, before standing up to make her way back to the girls' dormitory entrance in silence.

_No, this isn't right. I _have _to tell her._

"Lenalee," he called, and she turned around barely a foot away from the entrance.

_Maybe she'll understand._

"It's magic," he said weakly. "I was… trying… to… learn… to be… like you."

Lenalee seemed frozen with shock for a moment, but slowly, realisation dawned on her face as if it had been so obvious she should have known from the very beginning.

"You're trying to learn magic?" she repeated, walking back towards him but choosing to sit in a chair across from him this time. From the way she collapsed into it, she must have still been somewhat stunned at his confession. "But… you can't just _learn_; you have to be born-"

"I know, I know. I thought maybe… somehow… since they never came for you, what if I… It's silly," Allen said sheepishly, "but I thought there might be a chance."

Lenalee slowly nodded. "We were both in unusual circumstances at the time…"

"…But I've had so many failures," he confessed. "I've tried for days, and… nothing." Allen decided not to tell her of the _level_ of those failed spells; his pride refused to make him look _that_ bad.

"I didn't succeed the first few times, either," Lenalee pointed out. "It took more than a night or two."

_Did you try turning a needle into a matchstick? _"A-And there were those sparks that day with the wand… Nothing happened to me."

"Oh…" Lenalee sounded almost deflated. Had she really been hoping for the possibility? Allen's heart sunk; he knew Lenalee wouldn't end their friendship because of this, but he'd never thought his success might actually make her happy. Were his attempts not just for himself, after all? "That's true…"

"I… I don't know. It was a slim hope." Allen shrugged. "And yet I've kept trying…"

Lenalee didn't appear to be listening, however. Her violet eyes seemed to stare right past him, as if she were lost in thought. Finally, at least a minute after he fell silent, she spoke again.

"Allen-kun, I think you should continue."

He gave a start. "Continue?!"

"Don't give up."

"But the chances that someone with unknown family and abilities like me could really be a wizard are so low-"

"It isn't… That…" Lenalee slowly trailed off, nodding to herself even as her words grew fainter. Finally, her head snapped upwards decisively. "Allen-kun, if you'd like, I would be very happy to help you practise magic, even at these late hours. Just not every night; we both need to sleep."

Allen blinked at her, startled. "R-Really?" The last thing he'd have expected was for Lenalee to _encourage_ him! Even with the sudden knowledge that she'd be happy if he were a wizard, he'd never imagined that she would actually offer to help him like this!

_Is this really such a good thing? What if she sees me fail over and over again, and grows depressed… What if she cries?!  
_

"Um, actually, Lenalee," he began, "I'm not sure if that's-"

But she was already getting up from the chair. Allen fell silent, mouth still open.

"We should go to sleep for tonight," Lenalee continued, leaning down to pick up his textbook and hand it to him - or rather, hold it in front of her until he managed to reach out with one hand and take it. "You should sleep tomorrow night, too. The first day back? Or perhaps the second…?"

_Lenalee would be a good leader,_ he managed to think. _I can see why she's Komui-san's sister…_

"…so we'll stay after everyone has left the night before classes begin again. If you'd like, I can help you with that homework you left until the end, too; it'd make a good cover-up. Does that sound all right?" she finished sweetly.

All Allen could do was nod dumbly. She had all this decided already…

"Bring that Transfiguration textbook," Lenalee added, turning to return to the dormitory. "It's all right to start with Transfiguration, isn't it?"

"Sure…"

Lenalee flashed him a bright smile over her shoulder and then disappeared up the stairs, leaving Allen alone in the common room with the Transfiguration textbook in one hand, staring numbly at where Lenalee had exited.

Whatever his intentions were, and whatever his motives had been, Lenalee had practically made them all irrelevant – and he was going to learn magic whether he believed he could or not.

But somehow, he knew it'd be worth it to see Lenalee so happy again.

Now if only he had some of her confidence. Why _did_ she believe he could do it, anyway?

* * *

Being an assistant professor at Hogwarts, Lavi was in an unusual situation. Of no House, yet not an established figure at the school nor in the magic world, his knowledge and love of history had given him a reasonable cover story for why he was at Hogwarts. Initially, this unusual status – assistant professors were practically unheard of! – had posed a problem with regard to living quarters; fortunately, there had been an unused room or two in the professors' hallways. After the initial surprise of finding an unfamiliar young man living so close by, no one gave him a second thought, not this far into the school year.

Naturally, this meant he was granted access to _all_ of the facilities enjoyed by the faculty… including the bathrooms.

Tonight, he needed a bath. After whispering the password – _lemon-scented shampoo; _who came up with these things? – to the inconspicuous-looking door, he opened it into the largest bathroom he had ever seen. Even after three months, he couldn't help but be shocked by the size, the features, and the _money_ that must have been- well, unless magic was somehow used to reduce costs. He still knew relatively little about it, even after watching Lenalee practice; for now, history held his interest.

At the very least, it was nothing like the Order baths. He'd _never_ have to share a bath with anyone else here!

Not that he wanted to, not with that kind of an age gap…

Humming a happy tune to himself, he closed the door behind him and strolled over to the large bathtub – if it could be called a bathtub, since it could rival some of the shared Order baths for size. He turned a couple of the taps with a familiar ease, allowing hot water and tiny bubbles floating on the steam to gush into the basin, then, while waiting, pulled a towel from the rack and placed it close to the tub.

Did he have time to deal with his clothing before the bath filled up? A moment's pause for consideration made him decide to wait; an overflow could be problematic, and he had taken considerable care to both be inconspicuous and yet maintain a positive reputation among the faculty. Just to be careful…

Once it was full – and containing some kind of pale blue foam; he was in an experimental mood tonight – the taps were promptly turned off, and Lavi began to remove his clothing.

First came the robes he was required to wear to fit in among the magic users. Then the uniform coat that kept him warm during the icy-cold winter, and next, the knee-high boots. He pulled the shirt underneath over his head, giving a frustrated head-shake when it caught on his bright red mane of hair, and then tugged off the green headband he'd forgotten about until his difficulty with the shirt. His pants came off almost casually, and Lavi tossed them onto the disorganized pile of the rest of his clothing for the time being; nothing would suffer from not being folded. And finally-

Once he was done, Lavi strode over to the filled bath with a happy grin. He shivered, happily anticipating the warmth of the hot water on his bath-deprived skin, when a sudden, pleased hum made him pause with one foot over the rim of the water-filled basin.

Warily, he looked over one shoulder, and then the other. There was no one else in the room. Could he have imagined it?

Yet the moment he placed his foot on the edge, the hum came again – and this time, it was followed by a giggle. A female giggle.

He was being watched!

"Oi," Lavi called, stepping back from the bath and looking around the room cautiously. One hand twitched, instinctively wanting to protect his… more vulnerable areas. "Who are you? What are you doing in here?" Was it a student, sneaking in without permission or attempting to pull some sort of prank? Was it a painting? He didn't _see_ any pictures of women on the walls…

"Oh, you heard me?" A soft sigh came from the bath. Lavi spun around and stumbled backwards, catching himself before he tripped, at the sight of a bespectacled girl in robes sitting on the bathtub taps. A girl!

And at that, he did a double-take. She _couldn't _be sitting in such an unusual place. Unless… and now that he looked at her, she did look awfully smoky, perhaps even translucent-

"Are you a ghost?!" he gaped.

She giggled again. "Well, of course."

"Do you usually haunt this bathroom?" he asked slowly, hoping that his lack of previous encounters with her meant that he could assume she wasn't a regular inhabitant of a place where he'd once enjoyed (or believed he'd enjoyed) privacy.

Lavi was indeed correct. "No, I _usually _haunt the girls' bathroom on the first floor. No boys _ever_ come in there… not until recently, of course." Her pleased grin turned slightly secretive for a moment, as if she were remembering an incident where they'd done just that – more than just enter the bathroom, or else it would hardly be such a secret. Lavi couldn't help but be curious about the circumstances. "When I heard about _you,_ though…"

"Heard about me?" Lavi repeated, swallowing nervously. What exactly _had_ she heard?

"Oh, you know…" She waved one hand in the air vaguely. "It's not every year I get to see such a _handsome_ man." The ghost girl giggled again. "The last time this happened, I closed my eyes first, and then… ooh, I never thought I'd get the chance again, and you're _older_, too…"

"Right…" Lavi cast a quick glance towards his clothing. She may have been a ghost, but she was also, well, _female_, and he would have felt just as uncomfortable wounding his pride by retreating – she was dead; what could she possibly do to him? He had nothing to be afraid of! – as he would by being so exposed for a prolonged period of time. "I don't suppose you could… shut your eyes again while I take a bath?"

She pouted, but obliged by covering her thick lenses with translucent hands. "Well, all right, but don't expect me to stay like this any longer than I need to. It's no fun talking while you can't see."

_I hope she can't see,_ the Bookman apprentice thought before quickly sliding into the now-tepid water. Cringing, he quickly sunk below the cloud of bubbles, wishing they were thicker. If only the ghost wasn't sitting on the taps…

Despite the cover the bubbles provided, the ghost girl's continued presence meant Lavi was unable to thoroughly enjoy his bath. As he climbed out, sighing and promising himself a better one the following day, a faint call drifted from what sounded like the pipes to his perked-up ears:

"Ooh, he _does_ have such a nice bottom…"

Lavi couldn't remember the last time he'd blushed such a dark red. With this ghost here, and the knowledge of others back at the Order, it was possible he'd _never_ be able to enjoy another bath again…

* * *

The first day of the new term dawned on a dormitory once again full of its five male inhabitants. Allen had discovered during the holidays that he actually missed them, somewhat; it felt awfully lonely to be in such a large room all by himself, particularly with the four empty beds looming eerily in the darkness. On later reflection, Allen had realised that it wasn't the boys themselves he really missed. He'd grown far too used to sharing a bedroom over the previous year, and while the four of different hair colours were far more conspicuous and loud than Link ever could be (if not more obnoxious – well, most of the time they were, but Link had his moments, and only Kanda could possibly be more annoying then), they were still a presence.

So it was with a pleasant sense of familiarity and contentment that Allen followed the boys down the stairs to the common room. Unlike most days, and most certainly unlike the holidays, a large crowd surrounded the notice board.

"What's going on?" Allen asked the others as they attempted to wriggle their way through the mass of people. Unfortunately, with some of the students being of earlier years, his height proved not to be an advantage for sneaking around larger people.

"Dunno," came a response. "Though it's about time for-"

"Allen-kun!"

Allen attempted to spin around, which turned out to be impossible this deep in the crowd. Fortunately, Lenalee managed to grasp the sleeve of his robes and pulled him to the message board, where a large notice was pinned to it.

"Good morning," he said automatically, eyes wandering to the notice. Was this what everyone wanted to look at? "What is this?" he asked her, barely noticing her reply to his greeting as his eyes skimmed the unfamiliar words.

"Apparition lessons," Lenalee answered cheerfully. "I signed up for them just now."

"Apparition?" Allen repeated questioningly. "Oh – you have to be seventeen…"

"It's sort of like teleportation, I think. We haven't seen it done since learning about magic, since you can't do it on the Hogwarts grounds. Wait-" Lenalee tugged on his sleeve again and moved back towards the crowd. "Let's get out of here first."

"They'll be disappointed," Allen muttered with an amused smile, gesturing to the crowds. "My dorm-mates. They won't be old enough, either."

"It's just for sixth-years," Lenalee agreed. "Maybe a seventh-year that didn't take it last year…"

"There'll be another chance next year." Allen shrugged. "So you're going to learn?"

She nodded, flushing pink with excitement. "I'll ask Professor McGonagall if I'm ready to, but I think it'll be all right. I'm capable of doing sixth-year spells, after all."

"That's great!" Allen smiled warmly. "So when do the lessons begin?"

"It didn't say, but-"

"ALLEN!"

The smile slipped at the chorus chiming his name. "Hey…" he said weakly, noting the dejected expressions on the faces of the four boys.

"Not until next year," Will pouted.

"It was the same thing last year, too," Albert pointed out. "If we _remembered-_"

"You signed up, Lenalee?" Sean asked her. It hadn't taken the boys long to become curious about her, though months had passed before they'd formed an acquaintanceship through Allen. Gryffindor wasn't such a large House that names weren't known outside of one's own year. "We saw your name on the list."

She nodded. "I'm really excited."

"_Damn_…" Will sighed again. "Waited five years for this…"

"You'll have the chance next year, right?" Lenalee pointed out to them.

"W-Well, of _course_…" The blond boy suddenly perked up, nodding to himself. "And we're all sure to pass on the first try, too. I am, anyway."

Allen gave him a sideways glance; he'd seen Will behave like that before, and he knew what it meant. This time, he'd picked the wrong target. Strange that he'd start behaving like this now of all times, though, when Lenalee had been around for months before, and by Allen's side, no less. What was with this surge of confidence? It would have to be crushed somehow.

The Exorcist didn't notice the boys recoiling at his devious smile. Komui would be the _perfect_ threat…

"S-So, Allen," Sean began, wearing a shaky grin, "a-are you excited for next year, too?"

"Hm?" Allen was startled out of his dark thoughts at the question. "Excited for what?"

"Apparition lessons next year. You'll be around, right?"

Now that the question had been asked, Allen realised he was surprised the subject hadn't been brought up before. How could he tell them that, with luck, he wouldn't even be in the same time period at the end of the year? "Actually, probably not…"

"No way!" Four jaws dropped. Lenalee gave him a worried glance, seemingly wondering if he should have told them. "But you just got here this year!"

"Where're you going? Another magic school?" a stunned Chester asked.

"Well…" Allen's eyes flickered to Lenalee, bewildered. She shrugged, equally wide-eyed. "Something like that…"

"I guess you'll learn Apparition there," Albert said sourly.

"I don't know," Allen said slowly, giving a nervous chuckle. "I'm not sure I'd be very good at it."

"It can be dangerous," Chester agreed.

"I hear lots of students don't pass right away," Albert warned. "And _bad things_ can happen. Like leaving parts of your body behind-"

"Don't say it," the redhead said quickly, looking rather green. For that matter, none of the other boys, including Will, looked much better. Allen merely stared at them, puzzled; leaving one's body parts behind sounded very unpleasant, but he couldn't imagine how that could happen, and didn't want to try.

"I'm just concerned about all of that," Allen said quickly.

"But they can fix you right away," Albert added. "Most people learn eventually."

"_Eventually…_" Chester repeated grimly.

"Nonsense, I'm sure it's not too hard." Will clapped Allen on the back cheerfully, already recovering from the grisly thought. "Besides, you get pretty good marks. You'll learn fast."

Allen tensed at the comment. _Not with magic, I won't… _"Y-Yeah, but that's just Potions, and D-Divination, and… Not the same at all."

"Yeah, that's true…" Sean nodded thoughtfully. "Those don't really require magic."

"Come to think of it," Albert said suddenly, "we've never seen you do magic, have we, Allen?"

Lenalee's eyes were suddenly impossibly wide.

Allen gulped. They'd noticed something else, now, too – and this would be much more difficult to explain away.

* * *

_The Daily Prophet: Thousands Dead in Countryside Village Massacre_

_A small village in the English countryside was found destroyed last night, and its six thousand residents have been assumed dead, after a Dark Mark was seen floating in the sky over its remains by a travelling businessman. _

"_I was driving to London for a business meeting the next day when I saw what looked like smoke in the distance," the man, who asked to remain anonymous, reported. "As I got closer, it formed a shape- It's horrible; it really is. All those people dead."_

_Police say there is no reason to believe this is not the work of Death Eaters, whose use of the Dark Mark above their victims identifies their crimes. So far, however, there are no leads on possible suspects. A search is especially difficult due to the anonymous nature of most Death Eaters-_

The more he read of the article, the deeper the ruts in Lavi's forehead grew. He finally tossed the paper onto a larger pile in the corner of his bedroom, each folded as nicely as a worn newspaper could be. From the back, a smiling witch with shining hair displayed a shampoo bottle in her hands.

Every day, it was the same thing. Numerous casualties, and all the fault of these Death Eaters that had returned after fifteen years of peace. From what Lavi could tell, things had been just as bad before.

"Another war," he muttered to himself before picking up the next day's paper. They'd stepped out of one sorrowful battle and into the midst of another, only without the means to fight and protect this time. Some might even say this war was worse, if they didn't consider the conditions that led to what the Exorcists fought.

War created despair, and despair created akuma. If the Earl were around today, how long would it take the world to succumb to his cause?

Before he joined the Order, Lavi had thought humans were foolish, creating battle after battle for him to witness, and record in history – for they would otherwise be forgotten as time passed and new battles were waged once more. Finding that even a hundred years could manipulate even the largest of battles, however, had had a great impact on him. It was one thing to wonder if his colleagues would be excluded from history; it was another to know they would be.

And something else to know that these battles would _never_ end.

There would always be despair in human hearts – the conditions for the creation of new akuma.

* * *

Authour's Notes: Notes, notes… what do I have to say? Link "knowing" things refers to Allen's comments about Mana made in his presence during the G arc. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure I can't think of anything else that would need explaining.

Oh! The last scene with Allen, Lenalee, and the four stupid boys? It's intentionally similar to the previous scene. Originally, it (and what follows) was going to be in the middle of this chapter and then I decided it would make a nice cliffhanger instead.

I realise that I've lost my humour in this chapter and I hope to regain it for chapter 10. I despise this chapter; I really do. There's all this angst and thought and attempting to fix mistakes I made in the past while creating even more and it just didn't come out as I wanted it to. No matter; chapter 10 _will_ be funny and interesting and full of Harry Potter references.

I think I made a mistake with something Cho said, and… blah. Whatever. Pretend their memories suck.

I think I also made some continuity errors from the last chapter – but _really_, after ten months, would _you_ remember every little detail?!

Reviews are appreciated, particularly if you have some sort of criticism or, better yet, complaints (pointing out typos I made is nice but by no means necessary unless they're particularly embarrassing – just saying that it isn't the kind of criticism I'm thinking of). Questions are always loved, as are suggestions for things you want to see resolved by the end… because I do forget, and I do change things. Many things.

I initially wanted to update chapter 1 to include Link with this update, since at the time of starting this story, he wasn't yet a character in DGM. Re-reading chapter 1 not only made me unable to find a way to fit him in (er, pretend he's… busy… baking pies or cakes or something), it also made me realise how funny this fic originally was and how unfunny it now is. It's depressing. I _love_ that chapter.

My apologies for not updating sooner, and for the length of both this chapter and these notes.

Yes, there is a good reason for Allen attempting to learn magic that isn't "the plot needs it".


End file.
